Seduction
by Meara
Summary: One of the Undead is after both Rei and Usagi, but for very different reasons. Can Rei overcome the pain of her past to save Usagi, or will they both fall prey to the darkness that seeks to seduce them?
1. Default Chapter

And now for something completely different…  
  
This tale is a departure from the storyline I started with in "Fatal  
Exposure" and continued in "Full Circle". After almost two solid   
Years I need a short break from the end of the world and the rise of  
Crystal Tokyo. Book three of that trilogy is called "The Quest" and  
in the planning stages right now. I hope to get the first chapter of  
it out in a few months.   
  
As always many and abundant thanks go out to Masked Maiden for the  
Gift of her support, suggestions and proofreading skills. Is this  
girl great or what?!  
  
Please write to me at Mearari@aol.com and let me know what you think   
of my work. Authors can only grow through feedback and yours would   
be greatly appreciated! All mail is answered, even flames…  
  
Please note that this story is rated "R". While you could probably  
encounter more blood, sex and violence in an episode of "Buffy the   
Vampire Slayer", the mother in me needs to warn younger or more   
sensitive readers. Oh, and the mother in me also wants to tell you   
to go clean your room!  
  
  
Standard Disclaimer – I do not now, nor have I ever claimed to own  
"Sailor Moon" or the attendant characters to which valid copyright  
laws apply. Even though I don't mention them at all in this story,  
I do claim to own the S'Eyre, their Imperium, a 1997 Dodge Neon with  
about 35,000 miles on it and modicum of sanity.   
  
************************  
  
"Seduction"  
  
By Meara  
  
Chapter One – "Into the Storm"  
  
************************  
  
The first true heat wave of the season held Tokyo in a sweltering  
embrace. The daytime temperatures had reached or exceeded one   
hundred degrees every day for the last week. The sticky nights   
brought no relief, enshrouding the city in a cloying fog that   
burned off only an hour or so after sunrise.   
  
The Dean's waiting room was, at least, air conditioned for which   
Chiba Mamoru was very thankful. It was over one hundred degrees   
outside and the suit Mamoru wore was made of wool – summer weight   
wool, but wool nevertheless and it made him itch. Or maybe it was   
his own nervousness that made him itchy, Mamoru decided.   
  
Harvard had been less than understanding about his situation. For   
some reason they had trouble accepting the excuse that he'd been   
attacked on his way to the United States and was incapacitated for  
several months. True, Mamoru hadn't exactly given them all the   
details of his "accident", but he knew that a minute description   
would only add to his problems.   
  
"Well, this woman in golden armor showed up on the wing of the plane  
I was traveling on. She ripped the soul right out of me and added   
It to her personal collection of star seeds. Basically I've been dead   
for the last few months, but as you can see, I'm much better now. Did  
I mention that among my hobbies is dressing up in a tuxedo and   
fighting the forces of darkness? So, is the offer to study at your  
University still open?"  
  
For some reason, the people in Cambridge, Massachusetts were not as  
open minded about extra-terrestrials as the people in Tokyo were and  
even his abridged version of events was met with polite skepticism.   
Mamoru found himself secretly wishing that the next time some evil   
doer decided to conquer Earth they'd start with the greater Boston   
area for a change. A few months of dealing with the denizens of the  
Black Moon Clan or the Dark Kingdom would do wonders for their rather  
stuffy attitudes. Chiba Mamoru managed to keep a satisfied smirk   
from his face as the pleasant fantasy of the Chancellor of Harvard   
being vigorously pursued by a Youma (and a really big one at that!)  
played out in his head.   
  
Mamoru nervously glanced at his watch. The interview that would allow   
him to reenter Tokyo University should have started twenty minutes ago.  
He sighed softly and reached for a magazine on the table next to him   
To keep from thinking about all the things that could go wrong. What  
he saw made him stop thinking about his current educational situation  
all right. In fact, it grabbed his attention like a bulldog and held   
him riveted.  
  
The pulp magazine was several months old and devoted to entertainment.  
When Mamoru opened it a familiar face caught his eye. He blinked   
several times to make sure he wasn't seeing things. There in living  
color, and on the arm of Kou Seiya, was Usagi, smiling and looking up  
at the idol. The image of Usagi on the arm of another man was   
disturbing enough, but it was the expression on the face of Seiya   
that really hit home. He looked at the petite blonde with the eyes   
of a man head over heels in love.   
  
That other men could be attracted to his Usako wasn't exactly news to  
Mamoru. In the past, however, those men had been people like the   
alien Ail or the obsessive Prince Demando – men who never really   
stood a chance with Usagi. But someone like this Kou Seiya was   
another story.   
  
Mamoru knew that something had gone on between the two during the   
time he was gone. The last cryptic exchange between himself and Seiya   
was bothering Mamoru more and more lately. In the moment their eyes   
met, Mamoru could almost hear the thoughts of Kou Seiya.  
  
Cherish her, those eyes said, because if you don't, I will!  
  
He continued to stare at the photograph for a long moment before   
firmly putting the magazine back. Mamoru had avoided directly asking  
Usagi just what had gone on. Until now, after preferring to let the  
subject drop, he suddenly wasn't sure if that was such a good idea   
after all.   
  
"Chiba-san?" a female voice broke into his thoughts and Mamoru looked  
up at the secretary. "Dr. Nigamo will see you now."  
  
That would have to wait, Mamoru knew. Right now he had to concentrate  
on the matter at hand. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, and   
thanking the secretary, Chiba Mamoru walked into the office of the   
Dean with all the confidence he could muster.   
  
  
***************************************  
  
Hino Rei could think of about ten words that would easily describe  
the weather right now. Since nine of those words, if spoken aloud,  
would result in her having to write a punishment essay about language  
unbecoming to a young lady, she opted for the safest one instead. It  
would have to do for now.  
  
"Miserable," she sighed, trying to find a way to walk that wouldn't   
cause her First School for Girls uniform to ride up her butt. Since  
the material used in it was mostly polyester that was almost   
impossible. Rei resisted the overwhelming urge to claw at it as she   
moved towards the gate that led to the sidewalk.   
  
Sister Mary Angelica was on duty that hazy afternoon, standing   
Silently to supervise the release of the students back into the city.  
The Sisters of Mercy (and precious little they had of it, was the old  
joke on campus) ran the First School for Girls with a hand only   
slightly less rigid that the wrought iron of the institution's front  
gates. One girl called Rei's name and waved goodbye as she moved out  
and into the steamy city. Rei smiled politely and waved back. The   
hand then brushed a lock of the raven hair away from where it stuck   
to her damp face as she headed home.  
  
Despite the fact that she had friends at the First School, Rei had  
never been truly comfortable there. Hino Rei knew she was different  
and knew the reason why. She had a special destiny as one of the five  
Senshi of the Inner planets – the ones entrusted with the honor and   
duty of protecting the last Princess of the Silver Millennium. She  
was Mars, the beautiful sailor suited soldier of fire and heiress to  
powers that protected not only her Princess, but Earth as well.   
  
Unlike a lot of the girls at the First School, she didn't go home to  
a luxury air conditioned apartment or house. The Hikawa Shrine was   
well over three hundred years old. While it didn't have many modern   
conveniences, it did have an old fashioned one. The baths at the   
Hikawa Shrine were fed by a well spring so deep that those waters   
were always cold, even at the height of summer. Right now all Rei  
wanted to do was climb into one of the giant wooden tubs and sit in   
water that was at least thirty degrees below the air temperature.   
  
The heat now radiated back upwards from the concrete sidewalk,   
Bringing with it the strange "city smell" that seemed to permeate the  
cement after baking in the sun - the vaguely nauseating scent that   
usually didn't start until August or so. That she could smell it now  
did not bode well for a temperate summer this year. With only two   
more weeks until summer break, Rei was counting down the days. The  
last few months had, at least, been blessedly quiet. There were   
lingering scars from the battle with Galaxia (no, Rei reminded   
herself, not Galaxia but the being called Chaos who had possessed her)  
and they all needed time to heal from them. Rei buried herself in   
the comfortable peace and timeless routines of temple life. No   
matter what was happening in the world around them, the stone   
courtyards would always need to be swept and the wood for the ever   
burning sacred fire cut and stacked.   
  
At last the massive stone steps of the Hikawa Shrine, worn smooth by  
centuries of use, loomed in front of her and Rei gave a slow sigh   
before starting to ascend them. She smiled as she saw the tops of  
the trees in full leaf that lined her home. The promise of cool  
shade and a sweet breeze made the thought of mounting the steep  
stairs less of a chore. Her foot had barely touched the bottom stair  
when she heard it. In a heartbeat her safe and predictable world came  
completely undone.  
  
"Hello, princess," came a smooth, male voice.   
  
In spite of the fact that she was dreadfully hot, a cold sweat  
suddenly covered Rei's body and she turned sharply. Although she'd  
only seen him a handful of times in the last twelve years, Rei knew  
that voice at once. He was sitting behind the wheel of an expensive  
sports car, a jaunty smile on his still handsome face.  
  
"Hello, princess," the man repeated, opening the door to get out.  
"Surprised to see me?"  
  
"D…daddy?" Rei stumbled over the word, mentally kicking herself for   
allowing his appearance to fluster her. She took a deep breath to   
calm herself, but the anger in her voice was still very easy to hear.  
"What are you doing here?"  
  
Hino Rokojou bristled almost imperceptibly, his black eyes narrowing  
at his daughter's tone of voice. He quickly regained his composure.  
"I'm back in Tokyo for a couple of days and thought I might take you   
out to dinner. Come on." He started up the long stone stairs without  
looking back to see if Rei was following him. "Why don't you change  
into something a bit nicer first and we'll go somewhere cool."  
  
Rei could feel her face getting warmer and she unconsciously began to  
grind her back teeth in frustration at his attitude. She moved up the  
steps, putting on a burst of speed to pass him and get to the top  
first. Rei saw her father grimace as she did so and allowed herself  
a smug smile at his reaction. Her father hadn't changed. He still   
hated second place.  
  
"Welcome home, Rei," came her grandfather's voice as she cleared the  
last step. "I made some of the herbal ice tea you like so much and   
it's in the…" his voice trailed off as Hino Rokojou walked into the  
courtyard. "…icebox."  
  
The silence that descended like a pall was very unpleasant. The  
young woman coughed nervously as the two men eyed each other. If  
looks could kill, both her father and grandfather would be pushing up  
daisies right about now, Rei suspected.   
  
"Hello, Okibi-san," Hino finally said, looking down at the small man.  
"You go ahead and change, princess. Your grandfather and I have some  
catching up to do."  
  
Okibi Souji, Shinto Priest and owner of the Hikawa Shrine inclined  
his head towards his granddaughter. "Go ahead, Rei."  
  
"But Grampa…" Rei wasn't sure if leaving them alone was a good idea.  
  
Souji turned his head in Rei's direction. He was getting on in years,  
but he was still able to be quite forceful when he chose to be. The   
look on his face told Rei that he would not brook any argument from  
her right now.   
  
"Fine, be that way," grumbled Rei, throwing up her hands as she  
walked away. "Try not to kill each other, ne? It's too hot for me to  
have clean up the courtyard tonight."  
  
The small priest waited just long enough for Rei to disappear into   
The private rooms that made up the house. "What the hell are you   
doing here?" he growled at Hino Rokojou.  
  
The taller man folded his arms across his chest as he looked at his  
father-in-law. "Such an angry tone, Okibi-san," he clucked. "I   
thought priests believed in forgiveness."  
  
"You've been in the West too long," Okibi Souji's voice was heavy  
with scorn. "You're confusing me with the Christians. I'm a Shinto.  
We believe in revenge."   
  
"You're talking nonsense, old man." The appearance of politeness  
vanished abruptly from Hino. "I have no idea what you're trying to  
get at."  
  
"I am not going to play this game with you, boy," Okibi said in a  
soft voice. "Have your dinner with Rei and then go back to wherever  
it is you came from. I won't tolerate you upsetting her life anymore  
than you all ready have." The old priest turned his back on Hino,  
starting to walk away before he'd even finished speaking.   
  
That action of disrespect angered Hino Rokojou and he reached out to  
grab the smaller man's shoulder. "You have no right to speak to me   
like that."  
  
That hand never touched the Souji. Without even turning to look the   
Old man caught the hand and gave it a deft twist that made Hino  
Rokojou give a bark of pain. It seemed that Hino never learned.  
  
"Try that again and I'll break it next time," Okibi gave a final  
twist, then released the larger man. He walked away once more, not  
even looking over his shoulder as he spoke his final words to Hino.  
"Have Rei back before it gets too late. She has school in the  
morning and Kami knows seeing you will upset her enough as it is."  
  
The hand was all ready beginning to swell and Hino Rokojou gingerly  
massaged it. The diminutive priest disappeared into the Shrine,  
sliding a door shut behind him in a last gesture of dismissal.   
  
"Oh no, old man," Hino stared at the closed door. "The days when you  
dictate to me are about to end.   
  
***************************************  
  
Although he'd not seen the sun in over one hundred and fifty years,  
Kudoko Akuma had always made it a point to know exactly when the  
sunrise and sunset times were, no matter where in the world he  
traveled. A copy of "The Old Farmer's Almanac" sat on his coffee  
table, the dog-eared pages silent testament to his faithful use of it.  
Unlike most people, the desire to know exactly when sunrise and  
sunset were was much more than a hobby – his existence depended on it.  
The spacious apartment he now rented had only recently been converted   
from use as a storage facility and was just what he needed. The  
small windows were very high up on the walls and more for show than  
to allow light into the room. He could sense the approaching  
darkness even through the heavy draperies that covered them and  
prowled the living room like a caged predator, edgy with anticipation  
of what was coming. A large, antique print, ink on finely made silk,  
dominated almost half of one wall. He stopped his pacing, considering  
the scene it portrayed.  
  
It was of a fishing village and had been painted before the Meiji  
restoration. Kudoko Akuma knew every line, every nuance and hint of  
shadow on the silk painting better than he knew his own face. He'd   
looked at the print every day for over a hundred years. His own face  
he'd not seen in so long that he barely remembered what he looked  
like. The picture was of the village he'd lived in as a boy. When  
Akuma had seen it in a merchant's shop in 1898, he'd asked the price  
for it. The merchant unwisely declined to sell it to him. Kudoko  
killed the man on the spot and took what he wanted.   
  
He'd come a long way from that small rural village, but the memories  
of it still had a hold on him that he couldn't quite comprehend.  
His people had worshipped a local "god" who kept them safe from  
pirates and the bands of outlaws who prowled the countryside so  
pervasively in those days. The god's demands were really quite   
reasonable. Each year, during cherry blossom time, the petty god   
would choose a youth from among the village's children. On the day  
before his fourteenth birthday, Kudoko was chosen. The youngest son  
of a poor fisherman, he had the one quality that the "god" prized   
above all others. Akuma was beautiful.  
  
His hair was darker than a raven's wing and impossibly fine. His  
large sea green eyes were a rarity among the interbred villagers,   
striking and vivid. Even his face held the perfection of an angel in  
it, handsome yet beautiful at the same time. The innocent boy he had  
been thought he was going to a celestial realm to live with the deity.  
He quickly learned that the only place he was going to was hell – and  
he would be trapped in it for the next seven years.   
  
The local "god" was in reality a vampire so old that he remembered the  
first Emperors of Japan. The Master, as he liked to be called,  
treasured the kind of physical beauty that Kudoko possessed. He  
shattered any illusions of paradise the first night Akuma came to  
him. In a twisted orgy of blood, pain and pleasure he took the boy  
hard and fast. The nightmarish attack culminated in Akuma being  
forced to drink the vampire's tainted blood. With that ingestion of  
blood his "pretty toy", as the Master liked to call Akuma, became his  
slave, bound to him in way that only the vampire's death could  
sunder. The Master took his time with his pretty toy after that   
first night. Young Akuma learned that he continued to live only by  
his master's sufferance. The ancient vampire played his games with  
the fragile mortal boy; seducing Akuma with indescribable pleasure  
one moment, breaking him with excruciating pain the next. By the time  
his fifteenth birthday came, there was nothing left of the innocent  
child who had willingly given himself in sacrifice for the good of  
his village.   
  
Years passed and other toys came and went around him but Akuma  
remained his Mater's favorite. Finally, when Kudoko was about twenty  
or so, the Master seemed to notice that his treasured toy was aging.  
Unwilling to lose the beauty of his slave, the Master did the only   
thing he could to ensure that he would posses it forever. He slowly  
and carefully drained Akuma over the course of several nights. The   
dizzying dance of death was masked by a rapture so intense it blotted  
out every other consideration. When the Master opened a vein the  
first night and commanded his slave to drink, Akuma was all ready so  
weak he could barely suck a few drops into his mouth. The process   
was repeated after three days and marked the third time Kudoko Akuma  
had taken the vampire's blood into himself. When his lips were   
pressed to a shallow cut the Master had made on his chest Akuma   
latched on to it, strength flowing into him with the cursed blood.  
He fed greedily at what was offered to him, drinking with a ravenous  
thirst the likes of which he'd never known before. The sweet,  
coppery taste of his Master's blood in his mouth faded and the  
unnatural strength it had given him ebbed as quickly. Akuma slipped  
into the darkness of death, hoping that he was free at last from the  
servitude and misery of the last seven years.   
  
But the magic his ancient Master had set to work within him denied  
Akuma even that. The thirst that had consumed him in his last  
moments of life awakened Kudoko as night came. He fell on the girl  
his master had brought to him, draining her quickly and without  
thought. As his dreadful thirst finally slackened Kudoko Akuma knew  
the truth of what he had become. That revelation didn't bother him  
too terribly much. Akuma had long ago decided that there were two   
kinds of people in this world – those who used others and those were  
used. Having been the latter, he vowed to become the former.  
  
More powerful now, Kudoko was unhappy to find that he was still a   
slave to the one who had made him. That fact was brought  
unpleasantly home the first time he tried to defy the Master and  
leave the village. The elder vampire beat him savagely, nearly  
drained him dry and left Kudoko in a dark cellar for months, alive  
but unable to do more than beg for a release that would not come to  
him. When he was judged by his master to be sufficiently chastened,  
Akuma was released and the elder started to teach his toy what he   
needed to know to survive.   
  
It was during that time Kudoko came to realize that knowledge was the  
key to power. Practicing the skills he'd been taught Kudoko's first  
seduction of was of a woman from a neighboring village. She was as   
plain as rice paper on the surface but she had the one thing Kudoko  
needed almost as much as blood. She had knowledge and the ability to  
teach. Through her Akuma learned to read and write first in Kanji,   
then in the other languages she knew. He held her in thrall for over  
fifty years and she gave him the key to obtain the power that would  
lead him to his freedom from the Master. When Kudoko Akuma discovered  
that there was no more to learn from her, he thanked her and then  
killed her quickly. It was the only kind of mercy he knew.  
  
He began, quietly at first, to study magic, both dark and light.   
There had to be a way to break the hold his maker had on him and  
Akuma became obsessed with finding it. The Master may have known  
what he was up to, but was so old and so powerful that he never  
seriously considered that his "pretty toy" could pose a real threat  
to him. That conceit was what allowed Kudoko to lure the Master to  
his destruction in the end.   
  
Free now, he continued to study magic even as the wonders of the   
twentieth century dawned. He saw his native land reopened at  
gunpoint to the rest of the world. Kudoko traveled from the land of  
the Rising Sun on great steamships, ventured across Asia and Europe  
in trains and then automobiles. Times changed but Kudoko's need to  
learn didn't. He studied the magics of East and West, of  
civilizations that fell before he was born. His personal power grew  
as did his ambitions. It was during the last decade of the twentieth  
century that he made the discovery that would give him the opportunity  
he'd so long desired.  
  
Like most monumental discoveries it was more accident than intent. An incantation with a single mistranslated word brought him face to face  
with one of the great demons. The creature was trapped behind the  
Seal of Light but Kudoko had accidentally found a way to thin that  
mystic barrier. That chance meeting set him on the path he now  
walked.  
  
The small mantle clock, a relic of the nineteenth century, chimed  
lightly, breaking into his reverie. It was five o'clock. Sundown  
was in only a few hours. Kudoko Akuma shook his head, clearing it of  
thoughts from the past.   
  
Trying to settle his mind and order his thoughts Kudoko went to a   
lavish desk and sat down. The massive piece of oak furniture had  
been made in England during the last years of the nineteenth century.  
It was one of the few things that he had kept over the long decades   
as he was forced to reinvent himself dozens of times in order to  
avoid attention. In a drawer he kept locked, Kudoko pulled out an  
ornate ceramic bowl. It was eggshell thin and hand painted with a   
design from a folk story popular in the remote Russian village of the  
craft master who had made it. A firebird, blazing plumage in full   
display, circled the bowl. Blossoms of fire and rainbow sparks danced  
in the creature's wake as it reached for the sun. Kudoko took a   
moment to admire the workmanship of it before pulling out a matching  
ceramic vessel. He popped the cork in it, pouring the viscous, blue  
liquid into the bowl as he chanted softly. The last word of the   
incantation was breathed across the top of the oily fluid and he  
waited.  
  
The blue liquid darkened, churning slightly to rise along the lip of  
the bowl before settling once more. Like a veil parting, an image   
slowly became visible. It was little more than a piece of darkness  
itself, but a darkness with eyes that burned like banked coals.   
  
the voice whispered in his mind. It slithered   
about in Kudoko's psyche, seeking a weakness to take advantage of.   
  
"Tonight I take the first step in acquiring it." Kudoko said with a  
grim smile. He could feel the demon trying to find a way to take  
control of him, but as always, was unable to.   
  
The oily waters bubbled and frothed one last time before the image  
disappeared. The darkness moved, roiling with anticipation.   
  
The scrying bowl had a thin layer of frost building against it,   
distorting the image in the liquid. "I know what needs to be done.   
Very soon I'll have the means to break the seal that holds you."  
  
the creature hissed.   
  
The oily waters stilled once more and the scrying bowl was put  
Carefully down. A large manila folder on the desk held a series of  
photographs and Kudoko leafed through it quickly. The most  
prominent face was that of Chiba Mamoru. Kudoko's green eyes  
narrowed as he considered the man. As Chiba Mamoru or as Tuxedo  
Kamen, he was a formidable opponent and not one to be disregarded  
lightly. Especially, the vampire had come to observe, when it came  
to any perceived threat to Sailor Moon. It was true that his study  
of Chiba Mamoru had led him to his ultimate target, the one who held  
the power of the Moon, Tsukino Usagi. However, other factors had come  
to light that disturbed vampire. He flipped through the pictures he   
had of the Senshi, shaking his head slowly. He lingered for a very   
long moment when he came to a picture of Sailor Mars, letting one   
finger trace the outline of her lithe body before moving on. The   
young woman who held the Ginzuishou had too many powerful guardians  
for a frontal assault to work. Any one of them could make a very  
quick and painful end to his ambitions. The last picture in the pile  
was that of a young man with blonde hair. Taking it in one hand,   
Akuma held it up and smiled.  
  
"Furuhata Motoki," Kudoko breathed softly. He cocked an eyebrow, as  
if accessing the strengths of the young man in the picture. "You   
will be of great help to me – starting tonight."   
  
***************************************  
  
It was like eating in a fishbowl, but very comfortable one at least.  
The people in the restaurant had driven here in their air conditioned  
cars, rode up to the top floor the restaurant occupied in an air   
conditioned elevator and now ate their meals in climate controlled  
comfort. Rei glanced around, noticing that several of the women had  
slipped on light sweaters against the chill in the room. She shook  
her head as she looked out the window, noticing that the pervasive   
humidity had caused a thin sheen of moisture to build up on the plate  
glass. It only added to the feeling of separation from the rest of   
the city.  
  
"It's another world," she mumbled to herself.  
  
"Indeed it is, princess," her father said, using his fork to push  
around the small plate of greens. "One you should be a part of."  
  
"You misunderstand me," Rei's voice dripped with scorn. "These  
people are so disconnected from the 'real world' that some of them  
don't even seem to know what season it is."  
  
Hino Rokojou set his fork down. "For the kind of money they charge  
for dinner here you'd think they could make a decent salad. Too much  
balsamic vinegar for my taste."  
  
Rei looked at her own dinner. The tiny portion of beef was artfully  
decorated with carved pieces of vegetables and even a flower at the  
very top of the bone china plate. "For what they charge for dinner  
here you could feed three people for a week."  
  
"That's your Grandfather talking, not you," her father replied.  
  
The blood was rushing to Rei's face and she could feel it growing  
hot. "How would you know? This is the first time I've seen you in  
over a year."  
  
The fork was back in Hino's hand again. "That's not all my fault,  
princess. It's true my work keeps me very busy, but things have been  
strained between your Grandfather and I since your mother died."  
  
"Your work," Rei snorted. "And the branch of the Japanese consulate  
in Akron, Ohio is such a hotbed of international activity that keeps  
you much too busy to pick up a telephone or write me a letter, I guess."  
  
Hino looked around to make sure his daughter's comments hadn't been   
overheard by any of the other diners. "I'll thank you to not take  
that tone with me and to keep your voice down. I've never neglected  
my responsibilities towards you."  
  
"Money isn't everything, Daddy. It doesn't make up for the fact that  
I never see you or hear from you." For an instant her violet eyes  
welled up with tears that Rei had to fight back. She would not let  
him see how much it hurt!  
  
The face of Hino Rokojou softened for a minute. "You have your  
mother's eyes, you know. Such a delicate violet, like the color of  
the sky at sunset." The momentary slip of the mask faded and his face  
grew controlled once more. "I may have a way to be able to see you   
more often, princess."  
  
Rei wasn't sure why, but a chill ran down her spine as he spoke.  
"And that would be?"  
  
"That's why I'm back in Tokyo. There's a…" he paused, his eyes  
growing remote as he considered exactly how much he wanted Rei to  
know. "…a job coming open that I'm very interested in pursuing," his  
eyes were bright with an almost childlike excitement. "If I take it   
would mean my moving back here to Tokyo. If I was living in the city  
again, there's no reason you couldn't come and live with me, is  
there?"  
  
"You'd want me to live with you?" the idea shocked her. Her view of  
her father was built on the fact that he wanted nothing to do with   
her. "That would mean leaving the temple and Grandpa…"  
  
A sly smile crossed Hino's face. "It'd be up to you, of course.  
"Just promise me you'll consider it, ne?"   
  
Rei could only nod mutely. To cover her utter surprise she looked  
out the picture window. The sun was setting, dark clouds that  
signaled an approaching storm swallowing it up.   
  
Pleased that he'd been able to get Rei to see things his way, Hino  
was now feeling expansive. He gestured curtly with one hand at the  
waiter. "Shall we see what they have for dessert?"  
  
***************************************  
  
The oppressive heat didn't wane with the setting sun. The sultry,  
tropical air was stirring now, a breeze that signaled the oncoming  
thunderstorms springing up. Her long, sunshine hair blowing in the   
rising wind, Usagi stood on the balcony of Mamoru's apartment. She  
silently looked out over the city as one by one the streetlights came  
to life. The radio was on and she could hear it in the background.   
  
"The bad news is that the National Weather Service has issued a  
severe thunderstorm watch for Tokyo and the adjoining provinces.  
This means that conditions are right to produce storms that may  
contain heavy downpours, frequent and vivid lightening and strong  
winds in excess of fifty kilometers an hour." The evening DJ was  
obviously reading off a prepared script and he sounded slightly bored  
with it. He became more cheerful as he ended his speech. "The good   
news is that this means that the heat wave that has been making   
Tokyo sizzle for the last week will soon just be a sweaty memory.  
Speaking of sizzling memories, let's listen to one my favorites by  
the Three Lights, 'Todokanu Omi'. Taiki, Yaten, Seiya, if you can  
here me boys, we miss you and hope you'll come out of retirement  
soon."   
  
Mamoru came back into his living room at the tail end of the  
announcement, carrying a small tray containing two glasses of iced  
lemonade. Placing it on the coffee table, he went to join Usagi on  
the balcony. Something was not right with her, Mamoru knew. But   
exactly what that "something" was, he couldn't pinpoint. Things had  
happened during the battle with Galaxia that haunted her - that much  
he was sure of. Usagi had told him that she was having vivid   
nightmares, but never the details of them.   
  
Mamoru knew that pressing Usagi would only make it worse. That   
lesson had been learned after the struggle with Master Pharoah 90.   
In the days after she'd reappeared with baby Hotaru in her arms,   
Usagi had become increasingly withdraw, retreating into herself in a  
manner that frightened Mamoru. She'd never been at a loss for words  
before and Mamoru thought that Usagi just needed to be coaxed into  
getting it all out in the open. Determined to find the root of the  
problem, the pragmatic prince of earth gently but persistently  
dragged a few details out of Usagi the night after Haruka and Michiru  
had left.   
  
Much to his horror, Mamoru realized too late that he'd made a terrible  
mistake. It wasn't that Usagi didn't know how to tell him what   
happened – she had blocked most of it out. Severely traumatized by   
the battle and unable to cope with the memories, the pain and the   
guilt she felt, Usagi had pushed all of it into a small place in her   
mind and locked it away. Usagi wept hysterically for hours that night, repeating three words, "no more fighting", over and over in a fashion   
that made Mamoru fear for her sanity. He had forced a breach in the  
protective barrier she'd put in place much too soon and she spent   
months paying the price for his error. Mamoru stood patiently by   
Usagi on the days when she regressed into bouts of childishness,   
never once criticizing her for it. That particular behavior always  
meant she was on the verge of having another chuck of the horrific  
memories overtake her. It took defeating Nephelenia for Usagi to   
finally regain enough emotional stability to put that self   
destructive conduct behind her.   
  
Slipping his arms around Usagi's waist, Mamoru knew he was walking a  
very thin line in trying to find out what was really bothering her.   
His misjudgment of a situation had once hurt the woman he loved more  
than any physical wound ever could. Chiba Mamoru was not a man to   
repeat his errors.  
  
"You're very quiet tonight, Usako" he said, placing a light kiss on  
the nape of her neck. "Want to tell me what you're thinking about?"  
  
Usagi hummed in delight at the sweet shiver that went down her spine.  
"Seiya."   
  
He grumbled in mock anger, putting his chin on the top of her head.  
"You're in my apartment and you're thinking about another man?"  
  
Usagi laughed, the sweet sound making Mamoru relax a little. "That's  
part of the problem, Mamo-chan. Seiya was a guy who morphed into a   
girl. I'm still working that one out. Oh, did I tell you I had   
someone from one of those gossip newspapers you see at the checkout  
line stand at the Supermarket ask me if I knew where Seiya went?"  
  
"You didn't…" Mamoru laughed as he realized what she'd done.  
  
"Yep, I told him the truth. The Three Lights, idols of millions of  
girls, have gone to build a new life with their princess." She let  
Mamoru take her by the hand and lead her inside. "Can I help if I'm  
not a very good liar?"  
  
The door had no sooner shut behind them than a flash of lightening  
lit the apartment up. Usagi screeched in surprise and fear as the  
lights flickered off for a second. The rumble of thunder followed   
seconds later, indicating that the storm was still miles away.   
Mamoru pulled Usagi close and gave her a kiss that was meant to be   
tender and comforting.  
  
At least that's how it started out.  
  
Usagi slipped her arms up his back and molded her body to his,   
seeking more than just reassurance. The kiss deepened and Mamoru   
felt himself responding to her innocent ardor. Her hands slipped up  
under his shirt and her fingers danced across his back, snaked around  
to stroke the smooth muscles of his chest while she rubbed her body   
against his. He started to place hot kisses down her neck, nibbling   
at her earlobe as he went.   
  
"Usako," he whispered her name and took in the scent of her skin and  
hair.   
  
She gave a hum of pleasure at what he was doing and her own hands  
moved down his back, teasing Mamoru and encouraging him to be even  
bolder. Mamoru's hand strayed towards her breast and began to gently  
caress it.  
  
"Oh, Mamo-chan," she moaned softly while he traced light patterns   
across the sensitive skin, "That feels so good."  
  
Her breathless, passionate whisper broke through the haze that had  
overtaken Mamoru's mind. "No, we have to stop. You don't know what  
you're doing."  
  
"Why? Am I doing it wrong?" her voice was soft, holding a confused  
worry that she was somehow offending him.  
  
He moaned with more than just frustration. "Oh God no, you're doing  
it all very right." He tried to take control of the situation before  
he lost ability to think clearly. "Usako, you aren't ready for this."  
  
"Yes I am," she looked into his midnight blue eyes, her face close to   
his. "I know what I want. I want you, Mamo-chan."  
  
She was so beautiful, so honest in her naive passion that it made his  
heart twist painfully to look at her. "This is a very big step.   
There can be consequences I'm not sure you're prepared for."  
  
She brought a finger up to his lips to silence him. "I've all ready  
thought of that. I'm on the pill; I have been for a couple of months  
now. My parents are out of town tonight and Shingo is staying with a  
friend from school. I can stay with you tonight." A look of pain   
spread across her face as a thought came to her. "Unless, you don't  
want me…?"  
  
He took her face in his hands, looked deeply into her eyes. "I want  
you, Usako - I've wanted you for so long."  
  
"Then why should we wait?" Usagi's hands moved to his arms, sliding  
up them in motion that made him shiver with longing. "We love each  
other and this feels so right. When you touch me I want you to…to…"  
she growled in frustration. "I'm not sure what I want you to do but  
I really want you to do it!"  
  
For a virgin she was frightening good at seduction, Mamoru thought.  
"Do you have any idea of what's going to happen if we go through with  
this?"  
  
A sweet blush came to Usagi's face. "A little. I know it can hurt  
the first time, but I'm not afraid." She leaned into Mamoru with a  
sigh. "I trust you Mamo-chan and I love you."  
  
He kissed her hair, trying to keep his own raging hormones under   
control. "That's something else we've never really talked about."   
Mamoru pulled away little, catching her eyes. "This isn't my first  
time with a woman. There have been others. And there's a part of my  
past I've never told you about…"  
  
She smiled gently. "If it's in the past then that's where it should   
stay. In a way I'm glad you've done this before. At lease one of us  
will know what they're doing, ne?"  
  
Mamoru's was losing a battle he really didn't want to be fighting.   
One last protest came to his mind and he paused to carefully consider  
his words. "You've been through a lot lately. I don't want to take   
advantage of you. Maybe we should wait until things aren't so fresh  
in your memory."  
  
"Don't ask me to wait." Tears welled up in her crystal blue eyes,   
cutting Mamoru to the bone with the pain in them. "You were gone,   
Mamo-chan," she whispered softly. "You were gone and I'd never made  
love to you. Please, don't send me away. I need to be with you  
tonight."   
  
Chiba Mamoru wasn't sure if it was his own need for her, or the depth  
of her need for him that finally convinced him. He went to one knee   
and taking her hand in his, raised it to his lips in courtly gesture.  
"Then stay with me, my princess. Let me give you a night you will   
never forget. Please, allow me the matchless honor of making love  
to you."  
  
She nodded her reply and Mamoru swept her up into his arms. The sky   
finally broke open, the storm raging outside as he carried her into   
his bedroom, but they didn't notice it. After a thousand years this  
night belonged to them alone and the sweetness of it made it more than  
worth the wait.  
  
  
***************************************  
  
The heat wave was breaking at last.  
  
A small room in the very back of the building that housed both the   
Crown Fruit Parlor and the adjoining arcade served as the office.   
With no air conditioning and only a single window that over looked a  
dingy alley it was not the most pleasant place to work on a night   
like this.   
  
Furuhata Motoki sighed and ran a hand across his sweating brow. He'd  
pried the swollen wooden window open, allowing at least a little air   
to flow into the cramped and stale office. There was the sound of not  
too distant thunder and the breeze carried the scent of rain on it.   
He finished double checking his calculations then started to stuff   
neatly wrapped piles of yen notes into the deposit bag on the desk.   
All he had to do was put it in the large and impressive looking safe   
and he could be on his way. With any luck, Motoki thought, he might   
just be able to beat the rain home.   
  
No sooner had that thought crossed his mind than the sky opened up.   
Sheets of torrential rain started to come in the window, blown in by  
the sudden and gusty winds that accompanied the storm. With a   
muffled curse Motoki leapt up to close it. He'd just settled back   
into the chair when a clap of thunder resounded with a boom that made  
the entire building shake. The lights flickered off for a second then grudgingly came back up.   
  
When they did, Motoki found himself facing a handsome young man in the  
doorway.  
  
"Gyaaah!" Motoki shouted, nearly falling out of the chair.  
  
"Sorry," the man said, green eyes snapping with amusement. He looked  
to be only a little older than Motoki. His hands were stuffed   
casually into the pockets of his khaki pants. "I thought you heard me  
knock. May I come in? My name is Kudoko Akuma and I'm here about the  
night job that I'll be starting at your restaurant and arcade."  
  
"Night job - what night job?" Motoki repeated, flustered. No one told  
him anything about a new employee. "Please come in," he said waving  
the man into the room. His heart was still jumping around in his  
chest like a frightened rabbit. "There's must be some mistake.   
We're not hiring right now."  
  
A hand came out of one pocket to push a strand of blue black hair   
away from his eyes. "You are Furuhata Motoki, ne?" he asked   
confidently.  
  
"Well, yes…" Motoki started. How did this man know who he was?  
  
"Then there's been no mistake," Kudoko said softly. "At least not on  
my part. Your mistake, however, was inviting me into the room."  
  
Between one blink of an eye and the next Kudoko Akuma leapt at Motoki.  
Before the shocked youth could even draw a breath to shout he found   
himself pulled out of the chair and rammed into the wall in back of   
the desk. Kudoko used only one arm to hold him in place. The other  
hand reached out and ripped open the top of Motoki's shirt. Green   
eyes closed as Kudoko inhaled sharply then slid slowly open again as  
he exhaled. They had changed in color and appearance and, slitted   
like a cat's, were now a vivid and disturbing red. Growling softly   
Kudoko leaned forward, curling his lips to show two thin, razor sharp  
canine teeth that slowly extended into a pair of fangs. Motoki's   
eyes widened with surprise and fear.  
  
"You're right to be frightened, boy," Kudoko tipped his head back,   
mouth opening wide. "This is going to be quite painful for a moment."   
  
A clap of thunder drowned out the cry Motoki made as Kudoko plunged   
down, incisors piercing the soft flesh at the base of the neck and   
nicking the carotid artery. Blood, warm and laced with the sharp,   
acrid tang of fear pulsed into the vampire's mouth in time to the   
frantic beating of Motoki's heart. He ignored the struggles that  
Motoki made and after a minute they grew increasingly feeble until   
finally they stopped all together. The rain continued to pelt   
against the window as one minute became two, then two became four,   
but still the vampire continued to drink. At last Kudoko pulled his  
head away and let Motoki slide down the wall to sit limply on the   
floor.  
  
A last trickle of blood ran down Kudoko's chin and he used a single   
finger to capture it. His tongue flicked out to lap it up.   
"Excellent," he looked at where Motoki sat slumped against the wall,   
pale and only half conscious now. "The taste of your fear comes   
through so strongly. I could grow to enjoy you."  
  
The vampire crouched down, "You've just learned your first lesson,   
boy. I can give you intense pain." He took Motoki's face in one   
hand. "Lesson two is that I can also give you intense pleasure. Look  
at me," Kudoko's voice was soft, but commanding, and Motoki found he  
had to obey.   
  
Glowing red eyes captured and held the gaze of blue ones gone glassy  
from shock at blood loss. Those red eyes filled Motoki's world,   
blotting out everything else and he was unable to look away. There  
was the sensation of something starting to slither around inside his  
head, probing, seeking an opening. Motoki longed to scream but was   
only able to whimper as the vampire implanted a part of himself deep  
inside Motoki's mind.  
  
"Nnn…no, please," Motoki managed to croak out.   
  
Kudoko smiled, letting a hand caress Motoki's cheek almost   
affectionately. "Shhh, it's all right now." His arms slipped around  
the trembling body and pulled Motoki close. "In time you'll come to  
crave what only I can do for you." His head dipped to where blood   
still welled sluggishly from the puncture wounds. "There will be no  
pain this time, just a kiss and the pleasure it will bring you is indescribable."  
  
Kudoko brought his lips back down and began to feed once more,   
suckling at the wound to speed the flow of blood into his mouth. The  
moan that now came from the blonde young man had little to do with   
pain. Pain was an enemy Motoki could have fought against, but the   
pleasure that rushed through him was as unexpected as it was   
engulfing. His eyes grew heavy, half closing in dreamy bliss as the intoxicating effects of the unnatural kiss overtook him. What little  
strength he had left was fading away, the world growing ever more   
remote, but he didn't care anymore. Nothing mattered but the sensual  
ecstasy that filled his body. Motoki could hear Kudoko's voice in   
his mind, whispering to him, encouraging him to just relax and enjoy   
what he was feeling. He sagged against Kudoko with a sigh of   
contentment, drowning in the endless delight.   
  
Kudoko Akuma straightened up and smiled, letting Motoki flop to the  
floor. He placed a cold hand to the blonde man's chest. Motoki's   
heartbeat fluttered irregularly and the vampire knew the boy was   
nearing death. He brought his own wrist to his mouth and let one of  
the sharp fangs open a shallow cut. He pressed it to Motoki's lips.  
  
"Drink," he commanded. For a moment nothing happened and Kudoko   
feared that he'd take too much blood too quickly. This method of   
gaining control was always dangerous and problematical. The intended  
victim died as often as lived.   
  
"Drink, Motoki," Kudoko repeated, forcing his will on the almost  
unconscious young man.   
  
This time Kudoko felt Motoki feebly suck a few drops of the vampire's  
tainted blood into his mouth. As he did so a convulsion ran so   
strongly through the young blonde man that he came right off the  
floor for an instant. His eyes rolled up into the back of his head   
and he fell back to lay unmoving. A feather light touch of a finger   
to the pulse point at the hollow of Motoki's neck made Kudoko smile   
and nod his head. It was weak and thready but the boy's heart was   
still beating. Motoki would survive the night and live to serve his   
new master. There was just one more matter to attend to.  
  
Furuhata Motoki was found, unconscious but alive, the next morning   
when the secretary came to open the office. All around him was blood  
and broken glass from the shattered window. A small piece of that   
glass was imbedded in Motoki's neck. The authorities surmised that  
the winds had blown a rock or similar object against it during the   
intense thunderstorms of the night before. The shard of glass had   
caught him in the neck and nicked the carotid artery. All in all,  
Motoki was lucky to be alive.   
  
But as the secretary oversaw the cleaning crew who came to take care  
of the mess, she observed that there wasn't nearly as much blood as   
she had thought there would be. Where could it have all gone?  
  
***************************************  
  
Next – Rei's life is in flux because of her father's presence and a  
friend's departure. Mamoru's concern about Usagi's emotional state  
deepens. Motoki begins his unanticipated career as an in-between meal  
snack. All this and the discovery that muggers aren't the only thing  
to worry about in Juban Park at night! Be here in three weeks for  
chapter two! 


	2. Chapter Two

Why a vampire?   
  
I've had a whole lot of people write and ask me that question since  
I posted chapter one of this story a few weeks ago. This is not a   
vampire story per say, but rather a story that has a vampire in it.  
More importantly, this is Rei's story. She's a character that's   
ignored a lot of the time and I felt that she had a tale worth  
telling. There are other characters in this story; Usagi, Mamoru  
and even Motoki get some good air-time (he gets a chance to do  
something other than stand around in an apron!), but this is first  
and foremost a story that deals with abuse and overcoming it. If you  
think about it, what is a vampire other than the ultimate "user" of  
people? In the end Rei will discover that's stronger than she   
thought she was and that not all monsters hide from the light of day.  
  
I mention the "World Scholar Athlete Games" in this chapter and I   
wanted to let everyone know that they are a real event. Every year  
young men and women who are gifted not only academically, but also   
physically come to my little home state of Rhode Island to   
participate in them. It's nice to see intellectual excellence   
celebrated for a change.  
  
Many thanks go out to those who have written to me in support of this  
somewhat unusual story. Donna-I you were right. Some stories just  
have to be told. As always I want to thank the incomparable Masked  
Maiden for her willingness to read just about whatever I send her.  
This girl is saint!   
  
Standard Disclaimer – If I owned "Sailor Moon" and the attendant   
characters to which valid copyright law apply, would I have to go  
back to work in August when the schools open? I think not. You'll  
never find Naoko Takeuchi serving mashed potatoes with an ice-cream  
scoop, now will you?!  
  
This story is rated "R" for violence and sexual situations!  
  
  
************************  
  
"Seduction"  
  
By Meara  
  
Chapter Two – "Masquerade"  
  
************************  
  
"Oh God," Usagi said with real passion, "This feels so good! I   
could do this forever!"  
  
Hino Rei arched one elegant eyebrow, looking at the odongo haired   
blonde in the large wooden tub opposite her. "Long before 'forever'  
you're going to turn into a giant prune, Usagi."  
  
Usagi let herself slide down further into the tub of cool water until  
she was neck deep in it. "How about I do this just until I turn into  
a raisin?"   
  
"She's right, though, Rei-chan," Ami added with a decedent sigh. She  
floated serenely in the element she called her own. "I could stay   
like this for a very long time."  
  
Makoto, who shared the over sized wooden tub with Ami, was lounging  
in a manner that left only her head and feet above the water. "The  
rest of the city is slowly broiling and here we sit in the lap of   
luxury. I'm surprise half of Tokyo hasn't been beating down your   
door to do this."  
  
Minako lay on her back in yet another giant tub, long blonde hair   
fanning out in the water around her. "Well I, for one, am not going  
to tell a soul about this, not even Artemis."  
  
There was a devilish gleam in the eyes of Hino Rei. "When most   
people think of a bath, they assume the water has to be hot.   
Actually it saves the temple money when we don't have to heat the   
water that comes up from the spring here."  
  
"That wellspring goes very deep, Rei," Ami commented in a dazed voice  
as she continued to float in the water around her. "I can barely   
hear its source."  
  
That caused Usagi to sit up. "You can hear the water?"   
  
"Of course," Ami replied. "I can always hear water when I try to.  
I have to admit it's gotten stronger in the last few months, though.  
It used to be that I had to henshin to listen to the song, but now I  
can do it anytime I concentrate."  
  
The luxury of having a bath tub long enough for her legs made Makoto  
quite happy. She nearly purred in contentment as she stretched out   
once more, the cool water lapping over the sides of the aged oaken   
tub. "Maybe that last battle with Galaxia caused our powers to   
increase. It happened that way after both the Black Moon Clan and  
the Death Busters."  
  
"Well, I haven't noticed any big changes," Minako said. She took a   
mouthful of water and let it erupt as if she were a fountain.  
  
Her head leaning back against the side of the tub, Rei closed her   
violet eyes. "I don't know about that. My visions in the Sacred   
Fire have been coming clearer and easier than before as of late."  
  
"It could just mean that we're maturing into the more elemental   
aspects of our powers," Ami loved the feel of the water against her   
skin, like silk so smooth and clean.   
  
"Well this really sucks then," Minako grumbled. "I'm supposed to be  
the Soldier of Love, so why aren't the boys falling at feet ne?"  
  
  
A sly grin split the face of Kino Makoto. "What can I say, Minako-  
chan? Some people just mature faster than others."  
  
"I am too mature!" The very adult soldier of love stuck her tongue  
out at Makoto, who laughed in reply.   
  
Ami sighed as she floated serenely. "I'm going to miss you guys. I   
know I'll only be gone for a little over two weeks, but this is the   
first time we won't spend summer break together."  
  
"Being invited to the World Scholar Athlete games is great honor,   
Ami," Usagi could see that Ami was nervous about going all the way to  
the United States. "And one you deserve. Relax and enjoy the trip.  
We'll all be stuck here in sweaty Tokyo and you'll be living the high  
life."  
  
"Just think," Makoto gave a sly wink as she looked at her shy friend.  
"Two weeks surrounded by buff and toned guys from all over the world.  
If I'd known about these Scholar Athlete games I'd have studied a lot  
harder."  
  
"Well, I promise I'll bring you all back something from America," Ami  
replied.   
  
"Oh, oh," Minako raised her hand, "make mine about six feet tall with  
dark hair and oh so mysterious green eyes like that new guy Motoki   
hired to work nights at the Crown."  
  
"Kudoko Akuma," Mako gave a long sigh.   
  
"What a jerk," Rei grumbled.  
  
"Life is so unfair," Minako brought her hand up to her brow in an   
over the top gesture. "We all want to get close to Akuma but he only  
has eyes for Rei. She however won't give him the time of day."  
  
Usagi let a sly and contented smile creep across her face. "Not me.  
I'm quite happy with Mamo-chan, thank you."  
  
"So why don't you like him, Rei-chan?" Minako asked with a glance at   
Usagi. She was fairly sure that Mamoru and Usagi relationship had   
taken a much more mature turn. She made a mental note to have a talk  
with Usagi about hiding it a little better. If she could figure it   
out, then so could other people.   
  
"He's too good looking," Rei replied as she cupped her hands to play  
with the water.   
  
"Too good looking?" Minako shot back, "Are you crazy? There's no   
such thing as too good looking!"  
  
Rei's eyes grew serious for a moment. "Yes there is. Don't make the  
mistake of thinking that a handsome face means a good heart."  
  
An unexpected knock on the door broke Rei's train of thought. All   
five girls shrieked at once as the door cracked open. Makoto grabbed  
a nearby towel and pulled it into the water before she flung it as   
hard as she could.  
  
"I'm not coming in!" Yuuichirou, hand over his eyes, shouted as the  
sopping towel made a wet thunk on the wall near him. "Hold your   
fire!"  
  
"Yuuichirou, you eechi, what do you want?" Rei shouted back.  
  
"It's your father, Rei-san. He's here to see you."  
  
***************************************  
  
The late afternoon sun couldn't break through the heavy, velvet   
draperies that shrouded the small windows in the place Kudoko Akuma  
was currently using as his base of operations. The darkness in the  
apartment was broken only by a single, small lamp that sat on a table  
near the couch. With the sultry weather most people would have found  
the cool darkness quite nice. Furuhata Motoki was not one of them.   
He wasn't here because he wanted to be – he was here because he'd  
been forced to come.  
  
The call was one that Motoki fought every step of the way, but in the  
end was unable to resist. Ever since the stormy night the vampire   
had nearly killed him a little over a month ago, Motoki was   
unbreakably bound to his new master and he hated it with a burning   
passion than he hadn't thought himself capable of. A part of Kudoko  
now lived inside him, controlling his movements when he wanted to and  
always trying to smother any sign of free will on Motoki's part.   
While he couldn't break the control Kudoko had on his body, Motoki  
had so far managed to keep a small corner of his mind his own.   
  
The now almost daily summons routinely came just as the vampire was   
rousing. Knowing what was expected of him Motoki took a bottle of   
out of the refrigerator, gingerly handling it with disgust. He   
grumbled to himself as he placed it in a pan of warm water, bringing  
the liquid up to body temperature. Like most creatures, Kudoko woke  
hungry.   
  
(And we all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the   
day,) Motoki thought sarcastically.  
  
Placing the warmed bottle and a wine glass on the coffee table,   
Motoki sat on the couch as far away from the bedroom door as he could  
manage. Kudoko had yet to emerge but this wasn't unusual. He didn't  
have long to wait. The door opened and Kudoko Akuma walked into the   
living room.   
  
"Motoki," he smiled, "How good of you to come."  
  
(Like I had a choice,) Motoki grumbled to himself.   
  
"You're such an amusing toy. I can see how much you hate me in your   
eyes." Kudoko took the first bottle and poured himself a glass.   
Taking a long drink, he watched Motoki shiver with revulsion. He   
could feel the young man chafing against his control, trying to at  
least look away. "Foolish boy, you can't break the compulsion I've  
placed on you, but struggle all you want if it makes you feel any   
better."  
  
"It doesn't," Motoki replied out loud. The compulsion prevented him  
from running up to people and shouting that Kudoko was a blood   
sucking monster, but he'd discovered recently that by choosing his   
words very carefully, he was occasionally able to get around the   
spell the vampire had him under. That small liberty gave him hope  
that eventually he'd find way to free himself.  
  
The vampire moved closer, his hand sliding to stroke Motoki's neck.   
"Do you know why I chose you, toy? You're the man in the middle,   
someone close to both Chiba Mamoru and Tsukino Usagi. Working at the  
Crown has given me the perfect opportunity to study her up close,   
find her weakness." He casually began to unbutton the shirt the   
young man wore. "And she does have some wonderfully exploitable   
weaknesses. Usagi seems a little fragile to me right now. Why I   
don't know and really don't care. She'd be very open to something   
that would make her feel good and I'm sure you've noticed just how  
good I am at doing that."  
  
Fear lanced through Motoki's body at the vampire's touch and he   
prayed that the monster would go back to drinking what was in the   
bottle. Each time Kudoko fed from him the mind numbing pleasure   
seemed to eat away at his will and it took longer and longer for   
Motoki to come back to himself. If this kept up then one day there   
would be nothing at all left of Furuhata Motoki, only an enslaved   
shell that lived to do his master's bidding.   
  
"She has such a good heart, too," Kudoko all but purred, "Usagi is so   
compassionate, so naïve, so willing to believe in the good in people."  
  
(When Mamoru finds out what you plan to do to Usagi he's going to   
drive a rose right through your black heart, you bastard,) Motoki   
seethed internally. (And when that happens I'm going to be right   
there cheering him on!)  
  
Kudoko failed to notice that Motoki seemed somewhat distracted. "It  
took me almost two years of quietly following Tuxedo Kamen for me to   
discover that he's Chiba Mamoru. But from my study of Tuxedo Kamen   
it became clear that he was the one who'd lead me to what I seek, if   
I was patient enough. Now I will have control of the Moon Princess   
and through her, have access to the power of the White Moon."  
  
('Moon Princess', 'Power of the White Moon' - what is he talking  
about?) "I thought you were interested in Rei," Motoki managed to  
turn his head away, cheered by the small rebellion. "Every time she's  
around all you do stare at her." (And please, do continue to hit on   
Rei the way you are. Right now all you're doing is pissing her off   
and I definitely want that to continue!)  
  
"Oh, I am interested in Rei. She's a rare prize that one, such an   
elegant beauty," Kudoko's eyes sifted from green to red, the pupils  
becoming slitted like a reptile. "But enough of that for now. I   
want to show you something, toy," the vampire's voice dropped to a  
commanding whisper. "Look at me, Motoki."  
  
Trembling with protest, Motoki felt his head turning back to look at  
Kudoko as soon as the monster called his name. Those red eyes caught  
his gaze and the world started to fall away. His mind screamed in   
protest, but the allure in the vampire's eyes was too strong to   
fight. Motoki felt a now familiar lassitude come over him and he   
sighed, leaning back against the couch in a daze.   
  
"That's it toy, just relax. I told you that you would come to crave   
what I can do for you." Kudoko pushed the shirt away from Motoki's   
shoulders, exposing a bandaged wound at the base of his neck. The   
dressing was peeled off almost delicately and tossed aside. "Here's  
something I learned a very long time ago. If you want to break   
someone, use pain. But if you want to bind someone to you, seduction  
is a much more effective weapon."  
  
The vampire carefully took Motoki's face in his hands. "Let me show   
you how it's done." Kudoko stroked the young man's cheek before   
getting up to stand in front of him. A subtle glow encased the   
vampire's body as Kudoko cast his spell. It was a simple but   
amazingly effective illusion enchantment, one that used the mind of  
the victim to project the person they most wanted to see. Kudoko had  
learned it sixty years ago in a small Russian village and had found   
it very useful.  
  
"Motoki," he called at last in a low voice, "Motoki, it's me." He   
gestured with both hands and a wave of stardust flowed from him   
towards a dazed Motoki.   
  
A strangled gasp came from the young man leaning back against the   
cushions when the sparkling veil encompassed him. The world spun   
dizzily and he closed his eyes tightly with soft moan of discomfort.   
Motoki licked his dry lips, trying to remember where he was and how   
he'd gotten here.   
  
"Motoki," Reika called to him, "Motoki it's me."   
  
He blinked, eyes cracking open at the sound of the voice he loved   
calling his name. She stood in front of him, arms open wide.   
"Motoki, come to me my love."  
  
"R…Reika?" he whispered with shock. Everything had taken on a dream-  
like quality and the young blonde man stumbled to his feet. He gave   
a happy sigh at the sight his heart wanted most to see. "Reika, I   
thought you were on a dig in Turkey?"  
  
There was a coquettish smile on her face that was somehow vaguely out  
of place. "I've come back just to be with you. Aren't you happy to   
see me?"  
  
Motoki fell into her arms with a groan, so glad and relieved to see   
her that it hurt. "Oh honey, I've missed you so much. I've been   
having the strangest dreams since you left."  
  
"Reika" gave him a smile, reaching out to brush a lock of hair from  
his eyes. "Shhh, it's okay. I'm here now and everything will be all  
right."  
  
Arms enfolded him and Motoki didn't protest when they pulled him   
close. He saw what Kudoko wanted him to see, never suspecting that  
it was only an illusion. Fangs jutted out from between curled lips   
and, giving a low bestial snarl, the vampire plunged down. Motoki   
jumped slightly when the sharp teeth broke the skin. But as Kudoko  
started to feed, the young man's breathing grew ragged and his eyes  
slid closed.  
  
"Reika," Motoki moaned her name weakly. "Oh, Reika that feels so  
good. I love you so much." The pleasure swept through him like a  
raging river and he was drowning in it, unable to stop the wild ride.   
Kudoko pulled his head away when Motoki finally slumped against him,  
physically and emotionally spent.   
  
The image blurred, then shattered, falling away like the shards of a  
broken mirror. Kudoko Akuma held the shivering Motoki in his arms.   
He regarded the dazed young blonde with a smile. "Now, wasn't that  
pleasant, toy? As much as I occasionally enjoy the taste of fear,   
passion is much sweeter as it runs through the blood." He leaned   
down, running his tongue over the still oozing puncture wounds to   
stop the flow of blood.   
  
"And so very delicious."  
  
***************************************  
  
Usagi had a spare key to Mamoru's apartment. He'd given it to her   
several years ago and she'd only used it handful of times until as of  
late. She loved to be able to come here for a number of reasons.   
The small apartment was air-conditioned and wonderfully cool even on  
the hottest of days. Mamoru had made it quite clear to her that she  
could come here anytime she needed to and Usagi was grateful for that  
sense of refuge.   
  
On the days when the memories were at their worst Usagi could come   
here and surround herself with him. That, in the end, was the main  
reason she loved this place. Even when Mamoru wasn't home the small  
amounts of clutter in the apartment - the drying dishes in the sink,  
the clothes in the hamper waiting to be washed – were tangible proof  
that he really was with her.   
  
They sat together on the couch in his living room, music playing   
softly in the background. Usagi snuggled deeper into her beloved's   
arms, the balm of his love soothing her worries away. The future   
could keep its crown and palace. All Usagi had ever wanted was right  
here, right now.  
  
"Rei's father is in town?" Mamoru sounded surprised. "You know, I   
don't think I've ever even seen a picture of him. Rei certainly   
doesn't talk about him much."  
  
"Today was the first time I met him," Usagi sighed. "He's very   
handsome, I guess. Rei doesn't look like him at all though."  
  
"Handsome, eh? Should I be jealous?" Mamoru asked softly.  
  
Usagi gave a shiver of delight as his breath tickled her neck.   
"Maybe," she teased. "I mean he is good looking, in a sort of game-  
show-host way." She slapped Mamoru's arm lightly when he laughed at  
the description. "You may get to meet him yourself later. He's   
going to drop Rei at the Crown Parlor for Ami's bon voyage party   
tonight."   
  
Lifting his arm, Mamoru made a show of looking at his watch. "Hmmm,  
that's three whole hours away. Any idea of how we could pass the   
time until then?"  
  
"Let's see…" Usagi pretended to seriously consider her options. "We  
could watch the 'Weather Channel' or maybe that station that has golf  
on all the time. Do you have any suggestions, Mamo-chan?"  
  
Turning Usagi in his arms, Mamoru gave her a devilish smile. "As a   
matter of fact, yes I do."   
  
He pulled her close and they kissed. Entwined they fell back onto   
the cushions of the sofa, the kiss deepening as their passion for   
each other rose. Usagi's hands roamed over Mamoru in a way that made  
him moan in appreciation.   
  
"Mamo-chan you have the best ideas," she whispered in his ear, then   
nibbled on it.  
  
Mamoru placed urgent kisses down her neck, his fingers nimbly opening  
the buttons on her blouse. She hummed in approval at what he was   
doing, eyes closing in bliss. So lost in the joy of each other were   
the two neither of them noticed the soft ringing of the telephone.   
The machine clicked on at the fourth ring, the message audible even  
through the cheap, tinny speakers.  
  
"This is the Chiba residence and I'm not available right now. Please  
leave your name, number and a short message at the beep and I'll get  
back to you."  
  
The sound of it made Usagi involuntarily tense up in Mamoru's arms.   
He felt it and stopped his sweet explorations. "What's wrong?"  
  
Uncomfortable but unwilling to talk about it, Usagi shook her head.   
"It's nothing," she said a little too brightly. She kept trying to   
forget, but the memories of the awful days when the only time she   
could hear his voice was on his answering machine refused to go away  
easily.  
  
He wrapped his arms around Usagi. The sudden and unexpected anguish  
radiating from her hit Mamoru hard. "Usako, it's okay. I'm with   
you."   
  
Instead of reassuring Usagi, the remark made her start to shake.   
"Promise you won't leave me again, Mamo-chan. Please don't leave me   
again," Usagi whispered.  
  
As much as she tried to hide it, Mamoru could sense the storm of   
anguish and anxiety that raged through Usagi. She was a hair away   
from emotional melt down and he had not the faintest idea of what was  
triggering it. He took her face in his hands and placed gentle   
kisses on her forehead, murmuring reassurances to her as he went.   
  
"I promise," he told her over and over. "I promise I won't ever   
leave you."   
  
Usagi's hands came up and grasped his, moving to kiss him with an   
urgency that boarded on desperation. Mamoru didn't understand what  
was fueling these episodes but he intended to find out. That would  
have to wait, Mamoru knew. He couldn't have stopped his response to  
Usagi's passionate need for him even if he'd wanted to. Making love  
to her seemed to be what she needed most right now and he was more   
than content to oblige.  
  
***************************************  
  
The apartment was amazingly luxurious. It sat high in one of Tokyo's  
finest residence towers. Even through the afternoon haze Rei had a   
view of the ocean. She opened the double French doors, feeling a sea  
breeze sweeping up to met her as she did. The world below seemed   
very far away and Rei couldn't help staring down.  
  
"So what do you think?" Hino Rokojou asked. He'd seen the utter   
wonder on Rei's face and allowed himself a smug smile. He knew she'd  
go for this in a big way. "This is a rather nice way to live, ne?"  
  
Tearing herself from the views Rei moved back into the apartment.   
"You could say that. This place must cost a fortune!"  
  
"Never settle for second best," Hino said. He pointed to one door.  
"That's your bedroom, princess. I think you'll like the furniture   
I've picked out for you…"  
  
That got Rei's attention and she raised her hands in a gesture   
reminiscent of warding. "Whoa, wait a minute! You make it sound like  
I'll be living with you."  
  
"Well, of course," Hino sounded surprised and slightly annoyed by his  
daughter's tone.   
  
  
  
"I never said I'd come and live with you," Rei shot at him. "I said   
I'd think about it."  
  
"What is there to think about, princess? Look around you," he opened  
his arms wide. "Hard wood floors, cut crystal chandelier, an indoor   
pool and exercise room right in the building – this so much better   
than the temple."  
  
Her face was growing flushed by the conflicting emotions that vied   
for control inside Rei. (He wants me to live with him, a part of her  
cried happily – He loves me! I knew it)!   
  
(This is a gilded cage,) the other part of her shouted in response.   
(He magnanimously deigns to show up again and he expects you to leave  
the only real home you've ever known – what a jerk!)  
  
"I thought you said that this was my decision," Rei said, choosing   
the middle ground between her warring halves. "And more expensive   
doesn't make it better, daddy."  
  
A long suffering sigh came from Hino Rokojou. He ran a hand through  
perfectly coiffed black hair. "That's your grandfather I hear   
talking again, not you."  
  
"Is that so awful," anger was rising in her quickly. How dare he   
criticize the one person who had always been there for her?! "People  
come from all over to get the benefit of his wisdom."  
  
"There are a lot of things going on here that you can't begin to   
understand, princess. What would people think if you still lived with  
your grandfather? Do you know how that would look to the voters?"  
The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them.  
  
Rei raised a single eyebrow as she began to sense an ulterior motive  
to the sudden interest in where she resided. "Voters? You're in the  
diplomatic core, daddy. Why would you care about what the 'voters'   
would think?"  
  
"I was going to tell you later," he flushed crimson, partly in   
frustration, partly in anger at letting his temper get the best of   
him. "There's a Diet seat that's coming open in the tenth district  
and I've been asked to run for it. I need you to be living with me,  
princess. It would raise too many questions if you didn't."  
  
Rei felt as if she had been kicked in the stomach. She'd tried so   
hard not to let herself get her hopes up, but Rei had done just that  
and in that moment hated herself for it. Hot tears sprang up behind  
her eyes. Why did he only want her around when he needed something   
from her? What was wrong with her that her own father didn't love   
her?  
  
Not noticing her reaction Hino continued to go on. "It's not as if   
you'll never see your Grandfather again. You can stay with him on   
the weekends if you want. I'll probably be out of town then anyway."  
  
Grinding her back teeth together, Rei maintained enough control not   
let those tears fall. "Like I said, I'll think about it."  
  
"Don't make me force the issue. Just accept it and make the best of  
it. This is for your own good you know," annoyance was creeping back  
into voice. He reached out and took her by the arm, squeezing as he   
spoke. "What is wrong with you? Look around, most people would do  
anything to live in a place like this! What more do you want?"  
  
The violet eyes were cold and hard as diamonds when he unknowingly   
paraphrased her self doubts. Rei jerked her arm free, "In case   
you've forgotten, I'm sixteen now and that means I don't have to live  
where I don't want to."  
  
He had forgotten that salient fact and Rei enjoyed the look of dismay  
that crossed her father's face. "I have to get going now," she   
didn't wait for him as she turned and headed for the door. "Ami's   
party is at eight and I can just make it on time if I take the cross  
town bus."  
  
I'll drive you," he needed to mend fences with his daughter. He   
couldn't let it end this way. "We can discuss the situation on the  
way."  
  
Rei accepted the ride with a nod. If her father thought he could   
change her mind, he really didn't know her at all. And oddly enough,  
that idea hurt more than she thought it would.  
  
***************************************  
  
She was so beautiful with her midnight hair flowing around her   
shoulders. He was sure that the long ebony tresses would be like   
silk to the touch and wanted to run his hands through it. Her   
porcelain skin had a fine blush that only served to show off delicate  
cheekbones. It was her eyes, though, that he found the most   
enchanting. They were purple, the color the clouds just before   
sunrise and he felt as if he could happily drown in their regard.  
Like two bright pieces of amethyst they sparkled with the force her  
personality.   
  
"I'm fine, grandpa," Rei turned her back on the noise from the crowd  
in the Crown Fruit Parlor. She caught a glimpse of the guest of   
honor, Ami, surrounded by more friends than the shy genius thought   
she had. It was good to let Ami know just how much she meant to   
those who loved her, Rei thought. To be honest, it helped Rei to  
be around people who loved her for what she was; not for what she  
could do for them.   
  
Mamoru had been kind enough to let her use his cell phone and she   
wanted to keep the conversation short. "No, I don't where Daddy went  
and frankly I couldn't care less if you paid me to. Look, I just   
called to let you know that the party is breaking up and I'll be home  
in a little while. No, it's okay. I'm going to walk with friends but  
yes, I promise I'll be careful." Rei went to hang up the phone, but  
paused uncharacteristically, "Grandpa? I love you."  
  
Kudoko Akuma waited only long enough for Rei to turn the device off,   
folding it into the closed position. He came up behind her, leaning  
forward ever so slightly to whisper in her ear.   
  
"She walks in beauty, like night. Of cloudless climes and starry   
skies and all that's best of dark and bright meets in her aspect and  
in her eyes."   
  
Rei didn't even look at him. "Quoting Shelley won't get you anywhere  
with me. Go away."  
  
That she brushed him off so easily fascinated Kudoko to no end.   
"Actually it's Byron, but it's still true, you know. You are vision  
of beauty." He stepped in front Rei, blocking her path.   
  
"You just can't take a hint, can you?" Rei huffed when he slid in   
front of her. "Go away and leave me alone."  
  
  
  
"Would it really be so terrible to spend a few minutes with me?" he   
said with a smile. Deliberately Kudoko sought her gaze and, using a   
tiny portion of the magic at his command, held it. He raised one hand  
in invitation.   
  
"Come walk with me, beautiful Rei," he whispered in his most   
seductive voice. "My nights will be much too long without you."  
  
Rei met his green eyes and something in them made her shiver. Oddly  
enough, she found herself considering going with him for an instant.  
He was handsome and charming, she allowed. There was also an   
arrogance in Kudoko's gaze that reminded her too much of her father.   
  
She tilted her head in a display of annoyance. "Do you know what   
this is?" Rei asked rubbing the fingertips on her right hand together  
quickly. "It's the world's smallest violin and it's playing a sad   
song just for you. Now what part of 'go away' didn't you   
understand?"  
  
Brushing his hand aside Rei pushed past him. Kudoko let her go, a   
wry smile coming to his lips. She was magnificent. He'd only met a  
handful of people who could look him the eye and resist his charms.   
  
"Is she the one you're after," a female voice whispered petulantly   
in his ear, "That little girl? I know you've always liked them young,  
  
Akuma-sama, but she'd barely more than a child."  
  
His green eyes were still riveted on Rei as she walked back to the   
three small tables that had been put together for Ami's party.   
"She's only a year or so younger than you were when I first took you,  
my dear. But no, she's not the one I came here for." His gestured  
with one hand to the odongo haired blonde that Rei now sat next to.  
"That's her, with the blonde hair."  
  
Kudoko gave a sideways glance at the female who moved slightly to get  
a better look. She had the appearance of young woman of no more than  
seventeen or eighteen. Her hair was black as night and had been   
caught up in a single long ponytail that fell to her hips.   
  
"A blonde?" she asked, slightly offended by the choice. "Since when  
have you ever gone for blondes? Especially ones who wear their hair   
in such a weird way…"  
  
Kudoko folded his arms against his chest. "That is none of your   
business, Yohko. I called for you because I need to do something for  
me."  
  
Yohko smiled at him, turning to wrap her arms around his neck. "Do   
you now, and what's in it for me?"  
  
"You have so many questions tonight, Yohko. That I tell you to do it  
has always been enough before." He reached out and took her chin in   
one hand, slowly caressing her skin for an instant. "You've become   
quite independent these last few years, pet." She purred with pleasure   
before he closed the hand tightly, threatening to crush her jaw.   
  
"So independent that you seem to forget who is master here," he   
hissed, pulling her closer. "Who gave you the power you always   
wanted? Who made you what you are now?"  
  
Yohko whimpered, "You, Akuma-sama, you made me."  
  
The fingers squeezed tighter. "And what would you do for me, pet?"  
  
"Anything…" she replied at once, fear in her voice. The hand   
released Yohko and she gasped, gently rubbing her sore jaw. "What do  
you want me to do?"  
  
"That's much better, my dear," Kudoko turned his attention back to   
the table where Rei and Usagi sat. "Do you see that man, the one   
with the dark hair? His name is Chiba Mamoru and he's much too   
attached to my target. I want him removed from the picture."  
  
Yohko nodded, giving a sensual growl when she got a good look at   
Mamoru. "He's very handsome, Akuma-sama. Do I have kill him right  
away, or can I keep him for a while? I could have such fun playing  
with him."  
  
"Amuse yourself with him all you'd like. But remember that he has to  
die when you tire of him," Kudoko raised a single finger to catch   
Yohko's attention. "Oh, I want you to cut the blonde anywhere but on  
her face. A nice, deep cut, please – something that's easy to see.   
I need to test a theory."   
  
Curiosity flickered briefly across Yohko's beautiful face, but having  
learned her lesson for the night, she remained silent. Her cold eyes  
looked once at Usagi then drifted towards Rei. She didn't really   
care what plans Akuma had for the blonde. From the tone of his voice  
he had no lasting interest in her, but the girl with the dark hair   
was another matter. She'd seen that look in Kudoko Akuma's eyes   
before. He meant to have that girl, Yohko was sure of it. In his  
over one hundred and fifty years of life that as not truly life   
Kudoko Akuma had brought across only a handful women. Yohko was the  
youngest member of that elite group and she didn't care to share   
Akuma with this potential rival. Once she was back in Kudoko's good  
graces she was going to have to take care of that dark haired girl.  
  
"Of course I'll do what you ask, Akuma-sama." She leaned over,   
giving him a deep kiss. "I'd be more than happy to."  
  
***************************************  
  
Okibi Souji hung up the old fashioned rotary dial telephone with a   
sigh. Rei sounded very edgy, not that he was all that surprised.   
Spending time with her father usually did that to her. Souji had   
managed to keep Rei's father away from her for most of the years   
she'd lived with him. But each time Hino Rokojou blew into town and  
his daughter's life for a few days, she paid a terrible price. The   
emotional turmoil he left in his wake was never easy to deal with.  
  
In the past his son-in-law would show up for a day or two then leave  
as suddenly as he'd shown up. That he should be back for an extended  
stay after only a month's absence was not a good sign. Okibi Souji   
was, like many men of his generation, not very tall and some people   
made the mistake of underestimating him because of that. The gnome  
like Shinto priest had the soul of a warrior and the heart of lion  
when it came to his family. Rei was all the family he had left now  
and he was not about to let her come to harm.  
  
In the very center of the Hikawa Shrine was the prayer room that   
contained the sacred fire. The elderly priest entered to room and,   
removing his wooden sandals, went to a small altar in one corner.   
It was dedicated to the deceased members of his family and foremost   
on it was a picture of his late wife.   
  
He bowed gravely, then picked the picture up, his hands shaking as he  
did so. "Yuriko," he whispered, tracing the line of her face.   
Theirs had been an old fashioned arranged marriage and Souji liked to  
say that he'd gotten the best part of the deal. He'd spent each day   
of the fifty-three years they had together head over heels in love   
with her.   
  
"He's back, Yuriko," he said to the picture. "And this time I'm   
afraid he wants to stay. The day I've prayed would never come is   
here and I'm not sure if I have strength left to do what I have to.   
What if the pictures alone aren't enough?"  
  
Tears ran down the old man's face and splashed onto the glass covered  
portrait. "I wish you were here to help me with this, my beloved,"   
he said in a soft voice filled with pain. "I may have no choice but  
to tell Rei the truth, but I'm afraid it will hurt her more than the  
lie she's live with all these years, Yuriko. How do I find the   
words? How can I tell her?"  
  
He put the picture back on the altar and knelt in prayer.  
  
"How do I tell Rei that her father is responsible for her mother's  
death?"  
  
***************************************  
  
The small group of women clung to each other, weeping piteously.   
They stopped for a moment, looked at each other and then broke into  
loud tears once more. To make it even more confusing, they all spoke  
at once in snippets of conversation broken up by the sobbing that had  
stated again.  
  
"…going to miss you so much…"  
  
"…think of you guys everyday…"  
  
"…don't know what I'll do without you…"  
  
Chiba Mamoru shook his head in confusion. A hand patted him on the   
shoulder and he turned to see Motoki with a vaguely amused look on   
his face.  
  
"I thought everyone was happy for Ami," he said with a shrug, "So why  
are they all crying?"  
  
"I haven't the slightest clue," Mamoru made a motion of exasperation  
with his hands. "And I am not about to make the mistake of asking,   
either."  
  
Ami's mother had just arrived and gave a sage chuckle. "Get used to   
it, boys. This kind of behavior only gets better as we women grow   
older. There are all sorts of wonderful things to cry over –   
engagements, weddings, finding out you're pregnant. The list just   
goes on and on."  
  
"Thank you so much, Mizuno-san," Motoki sighed trying to cover the   
bout of dizziness that suddenly overtook him. "I can't tell you how  
much better that makes me feel."   
  
"Are you okay, Motoki-kun?" Mamoru asked. "You don't look good."  
  
"Just a little tried," Motoki heard himself say. He hadn't even   
thought about that reply, it seemed to spill out of his mouth of its   
own accord. It was one of the convenient lies his "master" had   
implanted in his head. Damn, there had to be a way around this   
compulsion!  
  
"You shouldn't be coming back to work so soon," Mamoru cautioned. A  
vague feeling that Motoki was hiding something tickled at the back of  
his mind. "The man you hired, Kudoko Akuma, seems competent enough.   
Let him run the place for a few nights."  
  
"Akuma is a…" he paused trying to shout, (A vampire - a blood sucking,  
undead, vampire! I'll hold him down and you stake him!) "…a very nice  
guy, but I'd get too bored if I couldn't come to work. Besides, I   
wanted to see Ami off and wish her good luck."  
  
"Speaking of which," Dr. Mizuno sighed. "Ami, dear, we really need   
to get going if we're going to get you on your flight."  
  
Five pairs of eyes, all with tears flowing from then, turned at the   
same time to look at Ami's mother. Moments like this, when the five  
girls acted in perfect synch, had always given Mamoru the creeps and  
he gave an involuntary shudder. How did they do that?  
  
"Now?" they all said at once.  
  
Maybe he didn't really want to know, Mamoru decided. Some mysteries   
were better left unsolved.   
  
"I'm afraid so," Dr. Mizuno smiled. She motioned for Ami to come   
with her used the other hand to open the car door. Before she   
climbed into the car, she reached down and picked up a small book   
that was on the front seat.   
  
"I believe this is the book Ami said you wanted to borrow, Motoki,"   
Dr. Mizuno said handing it to him.   
  
Motoki took it with a delighted smile. "Thank you very much Mizuno  
-sensei! This is just what I was looking for."   
  
Ami was in the car now and her mother got in also. "Well, enjoy it  
and don't worry, there's no rush in getting it back to me."  
  
Mamoru had his arm around Usagi's shoulders and she gave a watery   
hiccup, waving along with the other girls as the car drove away. He   
glanced at Motoki, "Thanks for the use of the hall, Motoki-kun. I'd  
better get Usako home before her father sends out the police to look  
for us."  
  
Tucking the hard cover book under his arm, Motoki quietly stared   
after them as they left. He lingered in the street, watching the   
group until they entered Juban Park. Unable to avoid it any longer,   
he went back inside the now closed Crown Parlor. He glanced around,  
hoping he really was alone and clicked off about half of the lights.  
  
"Did they go into the park," a voice asked from a dark corner.   
Kudoko emerged from the shadows and walked towards Motoki.   
  
"Yes," Motoki answered, hating the fact that he couldn't stop the   
need to reply to the question – but he could keep his forced answer  
as short as possible.   
  
Kudoko nodded his head, "Good." He took the book that Motoki had   
under one arm. "What's this, toy, a book? 'American Sign'?"  
  
"I'm taking a course in it this fall," Motoki replied evenly. He   
held out a hand. "You told me to continue on as normal and not   
attract attention. I always try to get a jump on my classes if I   
can. May I please have it back?"   
  
Kudoko tossed it back. He walked for the front door, not even   
bothering to look back at Motoki. "Very well. I'll be going now, so  
you can close up for the night."  
  
The young looking man with the raven hair stepped outside. Before   
the door to the restaurant had finished closing behind him he was  
swallowed up by a fog that materialized out of nowhere. Motoki   
shivered at that display of arcane power, quickly moving to lock the  
door after Kudoko. He knew something as small as a lock wouldn't  
keep the vampire out, but the gesture still made him feel a little  
better.   
  
Picking up the book Motoki looked carefully at it. Then turning out  
the rest of the lights he walked towards the back room.  
  
***************************************  
  
Aino Minako was between Rei and Makoto as they strolled at a   
leisurely pace through the all but deserted park. Mamoru and Usagi  
walked behind the trio, arm in arm Minako saw. Mamoru was much more  
openly affectionate than he used to be, she noted. She wondered if   
any of the others had figured out what their Prince and Princess were  
up to these days? That mystery would have to wait. Right now   
another and much more interesting twist grabbed her attention.  
  
"Akuma what?" Minako all but shouted.   
  
Hino Rei snorted with distain, rolling her eyes. "He quoted some   
poem by Byron and asked me to walk in the night with him. Can you   
believe that he thought I'd go of that kind of line?"  
  
"Oh my God," Makoto sighed, "That is so romantic."  
  
The blonde soldier of love leaned over as she walked beside her   
friend. "And you told him no? How long are you going to keep him  
hanging Rei?"  
  
"Forever," Rei grumbled. "He's so smooth, so damned sure of himself  
that it makes my teeth soft! Why would I want a guy like him anyway?"  
  
Throwing up her hands in disgust Minako managed to whack Rei on the  
side of her head. "Let's see, he's incredibly handsome, thinks   
you're the most desirable creatures in the whole universe and quotes  
poetry at you. Oh yeah, he's an insensitive jerk all right."  
  
"And because he deigns to look in my direction I should roll over and  
give him what he wants?" Rei snapped, boiling mad. "Excuse me, but   
what gives the almighty Kudoko Akuma the bloody right to drop into my  
world and expect me to change my life around to include him?! Who   
does he think he is?"   
  
"Is it my imagination," Makoto called back to where Usagi walked with  
her prince, "Or is Rei-chan a little crankier than usual tonight?"  
  
"I'm sorry, it's just…" Rei sighed. She knew she shouldn't take her  
bad mood out on her friends. She stopped her apology when she felt a  
strange coldness run through her. Looking down at her feet, she saw  
a thick fog starting to form at the ground level. "Un oh."  
  
"Sweet mother of pearl; what is this stuff?" Minako looked down to   
her own ankles rapidly disappearing into an icy mist.   
  
There was the eerie sound of a woman laughing within the fog that was  
rapidly rising to knee level.   
  
"Call me crazy," Makoto said, watching the mist slither in from all   
around, "But when the fog laugh at you it is not a good sign, is it?"  
  
In a heartbeat the unnatural fog enshrouded the small group, cutting  
them off from the rest of the world – and from each other. The few   
feet of ground that separated them may have as well been miles.   
Visibility was zero and if not for the feeling of Usagi's arm on his  
Mamoru wouldn't have known where even she was. Out of the damp, cold  
mist the sound of female laughter came again.   
  
"I don't like the looks of this," Mamoru said, his hand slipping   
inside his jacket to pull out a rose. He never got the chance.   
  
"Oh, but I do so like the looks of you, my soon-to-be toy."   
  
There was a blur of motion in the haze and Usagi caught a glimpse of  
something rushing at her. She had time to do no more than give a   
short yelp of pain as a razor-sharp finger nail opened a single, deep  
cut high up on her arm. A lightening fast blow to the back of her   
head made Usagi jerk forward, then fall to the ground without another  
sound.  
  
"Usako!" he shouted reaching for her as her now insensible body   
disappeared into the mist.   
  
The fog slithered around Mamoru's arms and legs, pulling him away   
from where Usagi lay. The mist quickly coalesced into a female body.  
Mamoru was slammed against a nearby tree, the sudden and unexpected  
impact knocking him out cold. Yohko had one arm pinning a now limp   
Mamoru against the trunk. Her free hand came up to rip at his collar.   
  
"In fact, you look good enough to eat, handsome. So I think I will,"  
she laughed. Her red eyes glowed and fangs nudged out from between   
her lips. She tipped her head back and prepared to strike, not   
noticing the small piece of paper that floated out of the fog at her.  
  
"Aku Ryo Tai San!"  
  
Yohko gave a screech of pain when the mystic ward hit her and she  
almost lost her hold on Mamoru. The mist cleared as quickly as it   
had appeared and the demon found herself facing three young women.  
Rei was in front, another ward in her hand. Yohko snarled at them,  
lips curling back to reveal her fangs.  
  
"Kyuuketsuki…" Rei said with shocked recognition, "Vampire."  
  
Yohko ripped the ward from her body and it disintegrated into dust   
between her fingers. Demonic eyes glared at Rei when she recognized  
her as the dark haired girl Akuma had shown such interest in.   
  
"Stupid girl, do you really think small magics like this can stop   
someone as powerful as me?"  
  
"Then how about we show you something a bit stronger?" Minako replied  
with a glance at Rei and Mako, henshin wand in hand. "Let's do it!"  
  
"Mars crystal power…"  
  
"Venus crystal power…"  
  
"Jupiter crystal power…"  
  
"…Make up!"  
  
"Sailor Senshi," Yohko hissed, recoiling in pain from the purity of   
the light from their henshin. Two unpleasant thoughts ran through   
her head at the same time. First was that if the light from their transformations alone had caused her pain, then they were more than  
capable of putting a quick end to her. The second was even more   
chilling. Akuma had set her up. Her one time lover had sent her on  
an errand that he knew would prove fatal.   
  
Venus pointed at Yohko, launching into her speech. "We are the   
Sailor Senshi and we will not allow…"  
  
That was as far as Venus got. The vampire grabbed Mamoru with both   
hands and in blatant violation of the unwritten time-out-for-  
soliloquies rule, tossed his unresisting body at the Senshi. Yohko  
glanced once at Usagi who was moaning softly now, starting to regain  
consciousness. She would make Akuma pay for this deception, Yohko  
vowed. She would deny Kudoko his target and take for herself   
whatever power he thought this girl possessed.   
  
"Fools," she shouted at them, "I don't 'allow' anyone to give me   
permission to do anything!"   
  
Mars was the only one able to dive clear. Mamoru, Venus and Jupiter   
went down in a confusing jumble of arms and legs. By the time Rei   
had rolled to her feet, Yohko had all ready gotten to Usagi. The   
semi-conscious Princess of the Moon had been hauled up in front of   
the vampire.   
  
Yohko gave a wicked smile, never taking her red eyes from Mars even   
when she lowered her head to lick at the weeping cut high on Usagi's  
arm. She could taste a hint of the power that ran in this girl's   
blood. "I take what I want, when I want. Because I can – because I  
have the power!"  
  
"Let Usagi go!" Mars shouted, desperation creeping into her voice.   
She called her flame sniper attack and stood with the flaming bow   
drawn. Usagi was too close the thing that had her, Rei knew, to let  
loose her attack without hitting her friend. "I said let her go!"  
  
"Make me," Yohko laughed confidently. "There are only two types of   
creatures in this world, the strong and the weak." One arm held   
Usagi tightly against her; the other pushed the blonde head to one   
side so that the neck was better exposed. "Those who use people and  
those who are used!" Her head tilted back and she prepared to   
strike.  
  
There was no time to think, no planned move or deed, just the   
unstoppable and overwhelming the need to act. The flaming bow   
disappeared and with a cry of rage Rei launched herself at Yohko.   
Grabbing the surprised vampire, Mars tore her away from Usagi. The   
two of them tumbled end over end in the damp grass, the wild ride   
ending with Yohko on top. The vampire slammed Rei to the ground,   
holding her down by the shoulders.  
  
"As I said, I take what I want, use who I want to" Yohko leaned down  
intending to tear out Rei's throat with her fangs in payment for the unforgivable sin of attracting Akuma's attention. "And weak little   
girls like you beg to be used."  
  
Something burst inside Rei at Yohko's words. "No!" She screamed,   
filled to bursting with a terrible, burning anger that overtook her.  
"No one uses me!"   
  
The fires of anger and vengeance raged inside Rei and she channeled  
it into her hands. Wrenching one arm free she grabbed the shocked   
Yohko by the arm. The words exploded from Rei in scream that tore at  
her throat.  
  
"FIRE SOUL!"  
  
From his vantage point deep in the sheltering canopy of a massive   
tree, Kudoko Akuma watched with amusement. Yohko had become much too  
independent in these last few years and he couldn't tolerate that.   
He knew that she'd never survive the encounter he'd set up with the  
Sailor Senshi. That his one-time paramour could remove Chiba Mamoru   
from the equation was the best Kudoko hoped for. The man was a   
potential problem when his plans for Tsukino Usagi unfolded and if   
he could be removed in a fashion that held no connection to Kudoko,  
all the better. A sigh of regret came from Kudoko Akuma when Chiba   
managed to get free. A growl of anger came next when Yohko grabbed   
Usagi. He'd been about to intervene when the most remarkable thing   
happened.  
  
Hino Rei, Sailor Mars, tackled the surprised Yohko. Words were   
exchanged, too soft for Kudoko to hear clearly, but the results of   
those words riveted his attention firmly on Rei. The young women   
with the midnight hair shouted an attack phrase and in a flash Yohko  
exploded into flame. The female vampire didn't as much as moan, just  
fell away from Sailor Mars in an incendiary heap. The Solider of   
Fire got to her feet and, hands balled into fists at her side,   
watched without pity as Yohko quickly burned to ash.   
  
Kudoko knew that Rei was beautiful, intelligent and a Shinto Miko.  
Those three things alone had piqued his interest in her. Her casual  
and utter refusal of his advances only whetted his appetite further,   
but in the moment when he saw her immolate Yohko, playful interest   
changed into passion. The rage she had just displayed, the burning   
anger spoke of a spark of darkness in her that he found irresistible.  
He smiled at the thought of how he could stroke that ember of darkness  
into an inferno that would consume her. Now that Yohko was gone   
Kudoko would need another suitable companion to share his eternal  
nights.   
  
And as he watched Sailor Mars, Kudoko Akuma vowed that Hino Rei would  
be that woman.  
  
  
  
NEXT – While Rei resists being drawn further into her father's world,  
her Grandfather comes to a decision that will have consequences no   
one can foresee. Mamoru asks for some help and Usagi is pulled into  
the trap Kudoko Akuma plans for her. Be here in three weeks for   
chapter three, "Subtle Persuasion." 


	3. Chapter Three

******This story is rated "R" for violence and adult situations.***  
  
I almost didn't post this chapter this chapter for a number of   
reasons. The primary one is because of the horrifying attack made on  
our country this week. But I decided that if I delayed posting, it   
would be allowing the bastards who did this a victory. That cannot   
be allowed. So please forgive me if the author's notes seem long,   
but I have a lot to say.  
  
As fanfic writers we tell tales about fictional heroes and their  
struggles. This week we have seen real heroes – the men and women  
who risked and, in some cases, lost their lives in an attempt to save  
others. They are firefighters, police officers, paramedics and, most  
poignantly, ordinary people. In a moment of terror and death, some  
found the courage to selflessly reach out and help those in need.   
Still others knew they were going to die, but refused to stand by and  
let the monsters who promulgated these attacks go through with their   
evil. Over the skies of Pennsylvania, they made sure that no other   
innocents would die with them. The courage of ordinary people in the  
most extraordinary of circumstances is their legacy to us. Their   
epitaph can be summed up in one word – Hero.  
  
Standard Disclaimer – I don't own Sailor Moon or any of the attendant  
characters to which valid copyright laws apply. This story is done  
purely for entertainment purposes and without any expectation of   
monetary gain.   
  
***************************************  
  
"Seduction"  
  
By Meara  
  
Chapter Three – "Subtle Persuasions"  
  
***************************************  
  
The answer was so obvious that Rei was a tad annoyed that Mamoru   
couldn't see it for himself. For a guy who was brilliant at other  
times he had some very strange blind spots. Or maybe it was just   
that men could be incredibly dense sometimes, Hino Rei decided. It   
wasn't that Rei meant to say it as sharply as she did, it just sort   
of burst from her lips before she could stop herself.  
  
"Well of course Usagi's having some lingering anxiety. We were all   
dead. You, me, all of us – dead! How did you think she'd take it?"  
  
There were dark circles under Rei's eyes Mamoru noticed. "Are you   
all right, Rei?"  
  
Sighing, Rei rubbed her temples with her fingers in a small, circular  
motion, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap that way. I've still got  
an awful headache from the way I used my attack last night. It was a  
bit more intense than usual."  
  
"A bit?" Mamoru gave a short chuckle that lifted Rei's spirits. "You  
immolated that Youma. Makoto was very impressed by the little pile   
of ash left behind, by the way. She kept commenting on it all the way  
home from what Minako told me."   
  
"You'll forgive me if I have no sympathy for a monster that exists by  
preying on the living," Rei added wryly. To be honest she wasn't if   
was the use of her power as Mars or the disturbing dream she'd had   
that was making her head pound. Bits and pieces of it kept flashing  
through her mind, refusing to go away. Thinking about it made her   
head hurt even worse, so Rei turned her attention elsewhere for the   
moment.  
  
"Let me try my reply again, ne? I'm not surprised Usagi is troubled  
  
by bad memories. You didn't see her when you were gone. There was   
one day when she thought you'd come back, only to find that it was   
Seiya doing his best Tuxedo Kamen impression. You should have seen   
her, Mamoru. Usagi fell completely apart, sobbing your name and   
calling for you," It made Rei's heart ache with sympathy when she   
remembered Usagi kneeling in the rain, calling brokenly for the only  
man she'd ever loved. "Did you know that she used to call your   
answering machine just to hear your voice?"  
  
"No, I didn't," but that bit of information it did solve a mystery   
for Mamoru. The sound of his answering machine in his apartment   
yesterday must have been the trigger for the anxiety attack.   
  
Sitting down on a wall under one of the largest trees, Rei motioned   
for Mamoru to join her in the cool shade. "I haven't told anyone   
else this, but I think that at some level Usagi knew you were dead.  
That's the reason why she never tried too hard to find out where you  
were in America, and why, when we did discover that you were   
'missing', Usagi wasn't really surprised. The bond you two share   
cuts both ways, ne?"  
  
That comment made Mamoru put his elbows on his knees and rest his   
chin on hands closed tightly. "The soul-bond," he murmured. Mamoru  
slowly began to tap his lips with one of his fists as a disturbing   
memory came to him.  
  
Usagi had used the silver crystal to stop the fatal plunge of the   
small asteroid he and the Senshi were trapped on into Earth's   
atmosphere. The memory of the instant the Ginzuishou had shattered  
came back to him. Something broke inside him the moment Usagi had   
fallen back into his arms, dead. The pain had been so overwhelming,  
the agony of loss so total that all he had been able to do was   
silently hold her lifeless body in his arms, wishing that he'd died   
with her.  
  
"Oh my God," Mamoru moaned softly in a moment of epiphany that cut   
him sharply. The answer was so simple that he'd overlooked it. "That's  
it."   
  
The bond between them would have shattered when he was "killed" by   
Galaxia. Too painful to deal with, Usagi must have repressed the   
knowledge. From what he'd been able to find out, in a matter of a   
few hours her whole world had come apart at the seams. Usagi had   
watched her best friends cruelly cut down before her eyes. Not   
satisfied, Galaxia had then taunted Usagi by showing her his star   
seed – proof she couldn't deny that he was dead. Shortly after that  
first Pluto and Saturn, then Uranus and Neptune, had fallen.  
  
"She was alone," Mamoru said to Rei. "She was all alone."  
  
"And being alone is something Usagi doesn't do well," Rei added.   
She kept the comment (Well duh!) to herself. It really wouldn't   
have helped the situation any.   
  
It was all so clear to Mamoru now. "The times she has these   
emotional meltdowns Usako always says the same thing. She begs me   
not to leave her again."  
  
Rei's eyebrows shot up at that remark. "Wait a minute, Usagi's been  
begging you not leave her and you didn't realize what it was about   
until now? What did you think she meant by 'don't leave me'?"  
  
"Not to study overseas?" the Prince of Earth said sheepishly.   
  
A hand snaked out and whacked Mamoru on the side of the head. "Men…  
Kami give me strength! Look, given time I think Usagi will get over   
this if you're supportive, stay in the country and don't die again."  
  
"I think I can handle that," Mamoru replied with a smile. "Is this   
an example of the gentle wisdom you dispense at this shrine?"  
  
"Yes," came the smug reply, "and people come from far and wide just   
to get it, so consider yourself blessed." Helping to solve someone   
else's problems served to lift Rei's sprits. "Usagi's grown up a lot   
in the past year. Let's give her some time and space to try and   
handle the problem on her own, if that's what she wants. Does anyone  
else know anything about this?"  
  
The advice was sound and Mamoru was very glad he'd come to Rei. For   
all the times that the two had fought like cats and dogs in the past,  
Mamoru knew that Rei loved Usagi deeply. "Only Luna so far. Until   
Usako is ready to open up and talk about it, I'd like to keep this   
quiet. Trust me, even well meaning pressure can only make the   
situation worse."   
  
That comment made Rei give a snort. "Believe me, I'm not about to   
try and pressure anyone to do something they don't want to. I've had  
quite of it in my own life lately, thank you. It's been making me a  
little cranky."  
  
That Rei's temper was somewhat frayed was obvious to anyone who knew  
her. Like Usagi, getting her to talk about it wasn't always easy.   
Mamoru made sure to keep his tone even and non-judgmental.  
  
"Really? I hadn't noticed. Would this have anything to do with the  
fact that your father is in town?"   
  
  
The fire that flared in the violet eyes was all the answer Mamoru   
needed. "Oh, yeah."  
  
"Do you want to talk about it?" Mamoru asked. "I may not have any   
specialized temple training like you, but I've been told that I'm a   
pretty good listener."  
  
"My father is manipulative pig," she responded with surprisingly   
little anger. It was more a statement of fact than anything else.   
"He's always been that way and continues to live down to my   
expectations each time I see him. And no, I don't want to talk about  
it."  
  
That was his cue to leave, Mamoru knew. Knowing when to make a good  
exit was a skill he'd perfected over the years. "Well, if you change  
your mind, the offer is open."  
  
Rei looked at him with a twinge of jealousy. The guy was so in   
love with Usagi that he'd walk into hell for her. Chiba Mamoru was   
handsome, intelligent and the nicest guy she'd ever known. Why was   
it that men like her wretch of a father and the too good looking   
Kudoko Akuma populated her life? Why couldn't she attract a man like  
Mamoru, Rei wondered and not for the first time?   
  
"Thanks and don't worry too much about Usagi," Rei added. "She can  
be rash at time but she's not a complete idiot. If Usagi is any kind  
of real trouble she'll ask for help."  
  
***************************************  
  
the voice in Kudoko's   
mind hissed petulantly.   
  
You'd think that a force of darkness as powerful as this Demon would  
have learned a little patience over the course of eons, Kudoko mused   
staring into his scrying bowl. "I have to be careful. I could take   
the girl hard and fast as I did with my current servant," Kudoko gave  
a surreptitious glance to where Motoki sat silently on the couch   
reading a book, desperately trying to block out what was going on   
around him. "But that's not my first choice. For all the power she  
controls, Tsukino Usagi is a very small woman. I doubt she'd survive  
the kind of blood loss it would take for me to gain control of her   
in a single night."  
  
the demon cautioned. The image wavered and flames  
burst from what served as the creatures eyes.   
  
Kudoko chose to ignore the threat. "Tonight is the waning moon,"   
Kudoko said. "By the dark of the next new moon I will have the   
means to free you."   
  
The image in the viscous blue liquid was fading once more.   
  
  
The strange azure fluid boiled up the lip of the bowl, then slowly   
stilled once more. When it did the waters were once again still.   
With great care Kudoko poured the liquid back into the painted vial that   
matched the scrying bowl. He stopped and considered the design   
painted on it, that of a firebird in full flight. The sparks it   
threw off resembled bright fire flowers and he smiled as he looked at  
it. How fitting that he should find a firebird of his own now that   
he was about grasp his chance at becoming Master of this world. He  
picked up the bowl, turning it slowly as his mind started to plan   
just how he'd bring Hino Rei to his arms.  
  
"All finished with your conference call?" Motoki asked, in a   
conversational tone, breaking the silence. (I wonder how much it   
costs to call hell, anyway? The roaming charges must be a killer,)   
he added silently.  
  
"Scoff all you'd like. For all the marvels of technology I've   
witnessed in the last century and a half, nothing has yet to equal   
the power and scope of even the simplest of magics." Kudoko   
  
  
carefully put the delicate bowl back into a drawer of the desk and  
locked it. "Just think I get great reception, no static and  
unlimited talking time - all that and no telemarketers."  
  
"Yes, but if you don't pay the telephone company they just turn off  
your service. I get the feeling the creature you're dealing with   
wants a lot more than your cell phone," Motoki mumbled, closing his  
book.   
  
Walking to where Motoki sat Kudoko reached out and took the book from  
his hands. "I didn't think you cared," he said, green eyes snapping   
with amusement at the interaction with the normally quiet Motoki.   
"What I'll be getting out of this deal is more than worth the risk.   
Are you still studying this thing? How long does it take you to read  
a book anyway, toy? You mustn't be quite as bright as I'd thought."   
  
A vulgar phrase ran through Motoki's mind, but upon reflection he   
was just as glad that he hadn't blurted it out. (Oh yeah, good going  
Motoki. You really are an idiot,) he chided himself, (Saying 'bite   
me' to a vampire is probably not the smartest thing to do!) "This   
takes time. Learning even the basics of American Sign is like   
learning a new language. Would you like me to demonstrate?"  
  
This was much more talkative than Motoki usually got. There was a   
look on his toy's face that intrigued him. "All right, show me," he   
gave a nod.  
  
The compulsion that Kudoko had Motoki under kept a tight control on   
what he could say. There was, however, one very large loophole in   
the spell the vampire cast on him. Motoki allowed himself a moment   
of satisfaction as he managed to use it.   
  
The blond man lifted his right hand and with a smug smile of   
satisfaction flipped up the middle finger. "Want me to translate   
that for you?"  
  
Surprisingly, Akuma laughed. "Don't push your luck, toy. You're more   
clever than I thought, manipulating me into asking you to do what you  
wanted to." He sat down on the couch and Motoki gasped when he felt   
Kudoko abruptly seize control of his body. "I hope you enjoyed your   
little 'victory'. It may be the last one you have for quite some   
time."   
  
Trembling with effort, Motoki tried to resist but was forced lean   
back against the cushions of the couch once more. "What do you   
mean?"  
  
Slowly Kudoko ran a hand over Motoki's cheek and the blond shuddered  
at the touch. "You're going to help me convince Usagi to let me take   
her – and without a fight that might attract the attention of either   
her over-protective guardians or her boyfriend. Oh, yes you are."   
He laughed when he saw the rebellion in Motoki's eyes. "That's why I   
put up with these small and very annoying displays of independence   
from you. I need Usagi to think she's coming to me of her own free   
will, at least at first. You, toy, play a vital role in that plan.   
After all, Usagi trusts her old friend Motoki doesn't she? Chiba   
Mamoru would never think that she could come to harm with you, now   
would he? But first I need to make sure that very clever mind of   
yours isn't working against me."   
  
"Oh no…" Motoki managed to whisper, horror lancing through him when   
he saw fangs slowly pushing out from between Kudoko's lips. His body  
trembled as he tried to fight against the power that held him. "I   
won't let you hurt Usagi."   
  
"Yes you will, toy," Kudoko chuckled softly, almost affectionately.  
"You'll do whatever I tell you to do. I know why you're so very  
frightened. The part of you that fights me gets smaller each time I   
take you, doesn't it? That's why seduction is such an effective   
weapon. The human body is hardwired to crave the kind of pleasure I  
can give you. Each time that it overwhelms you, I go a little deeper  
into your mind. Soon your only thoughts will be of me; your only   
desire to please me."  
  
He was right, Motoki knew, with a surge of both trepidation and rage.  
Each time Kudoko fed from him it took longer and longer for Motoki  
to regain any semblance of free will. Whatever magic the vampire   
used on him, it was consuming his personality, trying to turn him   
into nothing more than a blindly obedient puppet. (I can't let him   
do this!) Motoki screamed inside his mind, the shaking growing worse  
as desperation filled him. (I have to find a way to stop him!)  
  
Kudoko took a shuddering Motoki by the chin. Red eyes burned like   
banked coals and held an irresistibly power in them. "Look at me,   
Motoki. Listen to my voice."  
  
The world grew remote, everything acquiring a dream-like quality for   
Motoki and he struggled to stay conscious. Those glowing red eyes   
were bottomless and Motoki felt himself start to fall into them once  
more. He struggled to look away but he couldn't.  
  
Kudoko's voice reached him as if from a great distance. "Who do you   
live for?" the beautiful monster asked in a seductive voice. "Who do  
you serve?"  
  
"Y…you," Motoki heard himself reply hesitantly, and his mind shrieked   
in protest.   
  
Kudoko's fingers tilted Motoki's head, exposing his throat. "And   
what would you do for me?"  
  
Motoki could feel his will was being swallowed up, smothered by the   
touch of the vampire's mind on his. He stubbornly clung to his   
thoughts of defiance. (What would I do for you? How about I get you  
a year's subscription to a tanning salon? Or put a skylight above   
your bed? Or better yet – how about I put holy water in your ice   
cube tray?) he longed to shout. With a last soundless scream of   
impotent rage, Motoki was engulfed. He sighed, relaxing against the  
cushions.  
  
"What would you do for me, toy?" Kudoko asked once more, softly.   
  
"Anything," the blond youth whispered, lost.   
  
"Yes," Kudoko purred. He reached over and opened the buttons of   
Motoki's shirt, pushing it away from his shoulders. The vampire   
laughed, fangs gleaming in the lamplight. "And so you will, toy."  
  
***************************************  
  
Minako summed it up quite nicely, speaking for everyone. "Sweet   
mother of pearl! This place is incredible."  
  
"You can see for miles," Makoto said looking out the glass French   
doors. "Or at least you'd be able to if things weren't so hazy."  
  
"And it's air conditioned," Usagi sighed with pleasure. "I think   
I'll move in here with you Rei-chan." The odango-haired blonde   
leaned over to whisper at Rei. "I think Luna will, too. You should   
hear her complain about how uncomfortable she is in this weather."  
  
"I never said I was moving in," Rei mumbled, looking around for her  
father. He had yet to learn a simple lesson about his daughter. The  
harder Rei was pushed to do something, the less likely she was to do   
it.  
  
Hino Rokojou had a very satisfied smile on his face. He finished   
pulling on a terry cloth cover up over his swimsuit and glanced at   
his daughter. Girls this age were very concerned about what their   
friends thought, Hino knew. If he could get them to like this place,  
then Rei would be swayed by them.  
  
"I'm glad you like our apartment, girls," he said trying not to sound  
too smug. "You'd be welcome here anytime, of course. If, that is, I  
can convince my daughter to move in here."  
  
That was what the sudden and unexpected invitation to come for a swim  
was really all about, Rei suspected. Her father was trying to get her  
friends to do his dirty work for him. Why couldn't the man take "no"   
for an answer?  
  
"I'm sorry, Hino-san," Usagi replied, wondering why Rei looked like   
she was about to explode. "But no one can convince Rei to do anything  
she doesn't want to."  
  
"Thank you Usagi," Rei said softly.   
  
"She can be very stubborn sometimes," Usagi added with a sigh.  
  
"I wonder where I get that particular trait from," Rei gave Usagi an  
elbow in the ribs.  
  
Hino Rokojou gave a charmed laugh at Rei's comment. "Not your mother,  
that's for sure. Miya was the sweetest, most accommodating woman in  
the world. Just remember that I've had a lot more practice in   
getting my way than you have, princess. In the end you'll see that   
I'm right about living here. I know what's best for you."  
  
Picking up her towel, Rei turned her back to her father and headed   
for the door to cover the blush that came to her face. "Shall we   
head for the pool?"  
  
Sometimes he made her believe that, in his own way, he loved her.  
That what made it so difficult to stop hoping that someday things   
between them would be made right. Maybe it really could work out   
this time.   
  
***************************************  
The room that held the sacred fire was at the heart of the Hikawa   
Shrine. Okibi Souji's family had owned this temple for over two   
hundred years. It had survived war and fire, earthquakes and floods.  
His fondest wish was for his granddaughter to inherit it someday and  
raise a family that would follow the traditions that had defined his  
own life. Rei had the gift of Sight that ran in the family, and a  
strong one at that. The Sight usually awoke at adolescence, but   
Rei's had come to her early, when she was about four. He remembered  
his shock the first time she told him about the pictures she saw in  
flames and the things the fire told her. Her mother had done her best  
to try and hide it from her husband, afraid of how he'd react.   
  
Afraid of how he'd react…  
  
That alone should have tipped him off, Okibi knew with in hindsight.  
There were so many signs of trouble, but his beloved wife had died   
that year and his heart was too filled with grief to see beyond his   
own pain. Okibi Souji had sworn to both his wife and daughter that   
he'd do whatever he had to in order to keep Rei safe. The old man   
was not one to forget such a promise.  
  
  
He knelt in front of the small family altar, clapping his hands   
together three times to gain the attention of their spirits. Bowing  
gravely to the altar he scampered back a few feet and, still on his   
knees, started to pull on one of the floorboards. The humid weather  
had caused it to swell and he had to tug hard to get it to come up.  
With a final grunt of effort it did and he placed it to one side. A   
carved wooden box, covered in layers of airtight plastic sat embedded  
  
in the dirt. It took only a moment to pull it free and with great   
care the old man unwrapped it.  
  
Locks of hair tied with silk ribbons, faded pictures and pieces of  
yellowing paper held a lifetime of memories both happy and sad.   
Tucked into one corner was a small plastic case. The celluloid   
strips inside it were undamaged and he gingerly picked one up.   
Holding it up to the light Souji let a sigh escape his lips.   
  
"I'm sorry, Miya," he said looking at the portrait. "I know you   
  
never wanted these to see the light of day, but I have to use them   
now." He put the negatives back into their case, shaking his head.  
"We both know that Rokojou isn't capable of taking a hint, the   
arrogant bastard."  
  
He chuckled slightly, looking at the picture of wife. "You always  
said the only way to get through to that boy was by hitting him on   
the head with a mallet. And this," he gestured the hand with the   
plastic case in it, "Is the biggest, heaviest mallet I know of."  
  
***************************************  
  
It as a never ending source of amusement to Michiru to watch Rei and  
Usagi together. On the surface the two girls appeared to be complete  
opposites, right down to their coloring. One of the things that did   
have in common, though, was that both could be amazingly stubborn and   
intractable. Usagi's stubbornness tended to manifest itself in ways  
Michiru could at least predict. If there was a lost soul or hopeless  
case, Usagi would end up right in the middle of it, trying to make   
everything right. Rei, on the other hand was the more thoughtful   
of the two. But once Hino Rei had made up her mind you might as well  
consider trying to empty the Pacific ocean one teaspoon at a time.   
That task would be more likely to see fruition than that of seeing  
Rei back off from her stated position.   
  
Usagi had an the uncanny (although Haruka called it "insane") ability   
to see the potential for goodness in everyone. Rei's gift was much   
more practical. She could see people for what they really were. It   
was that incredible insight that made the Solider of Mars a force to  
be feared. So, Michiru sighed as she watched Rei, why was the girl   
willing to blind herself to what her father really was? The moment  
Michiru's hand touched his, she knew just what Hino Rokojou was all   
about. The self absorption of the man was pathetically transparent.  
  
"A pleasure to meet you, Kaioh-san," Hino Rokojou said, real interest  
in his eyes. "I had no idea that my daughter had friends of such  
importance."  
  
(And how can I use you to my advantage?) Michiru could almost hear   
that idea running through Hino's head. "Rei is a very special person  
in her own right, Hino-san," Michiru replied courteously. "I didn't  
know that your daughter was a member of the club here."  
  
"Rei's father just took an apartment here," Minako said in an even  
tone.   
  
"I'm hoping I can convince her to move in with me," Hino added,   
smiling for the benefit of those around him.   
  
"It's air conditioned," Usagi sighed.   
  
"And very spacious," Makoto added. The more she was around Rei's   
father, the less she liked the man. There was something about him  
that made her oddly uncomfortable.   
  
"But not as good as the Hikawa Shrine," Rei shot back. "Anybody can   
live in a fancy apartment."  
  
"Michiru, sorry to keep you waiting," came a tenor voice. "I had   
trouble finding a good parking space."  
  
A wry smiled tugged at Michiru's lips. Haruka's idea of a "good  
parking spot" was one that didn't have any other cars within a quarter  
mile of her much pampered automobile. She reacted to a door ding the  
way others reacted to a head on collision. "At least you managed to   
find some company to wait with you," Haruka added with a smile of her  
own. She looked at Rokojou with pleasant curiosity.  
  
"Tenoh Haruka, this is my father, Hino Rokojou," Rei said, making the  
proper introductions.   
  
"Tenoh Haruka, the formula one driver?" Hino asked. His daughter had  
friends that just might be able to help him reach the vital eighteen  
to forty voters block. "My little girl is just full of interesting   
surprises today."  
  
"Rei is like that, ne?" Haruka replied with a sly wink that made the  
Soldier of Fire blush.  
  
It was when Haruka moved in to shake the   
man's hand that it happened. She leaned over ever so slightly and   
the fabric of her loose shirt moved in just the right way so that   
Hino caught a glimpse of Haruka's breasts. The revelation that the  
driver most of the world thought of as male was, in reality, very   
female was the milder of the shocks Rokojou was in store for. After  
greeting Rei's father, Haruka moved to her lifemate and gave her a   
gentle kiss on the cheek.   
  
"Ready to go, love?" Haruka asked softly. "It was a pleasure to meet  
you Hino-san," Haruka said with a short bow.   
  
"And you also," Hino replied, his face blanching white. He pushed  
the button to call the elevator. "Princess, would you come upstairs  
with me for a moment? There's something I need to talk to you  
about."  
  
Rei did not like the look on her father's face. "Umm, all right.   
  
I'll call you guys later, okay?" she said to her friends.  
  
"Rei-chan, if you want us to stay…" Makoto started.   
  
The elevator door slid smoothly open. "No, no, you go ahead. I'll   
be fine, really." She stepped into the elevator and gave a short   
wave, "Ja ne."  
  
The doors slid shut and an uncomfortable silence fell on Minako,   
Usagi and Makoto.   
  
"It is me," Usagi finally said. She watched the numbers light up one  
after another as the machine climbed methodically towards its   
destination. "Or did things with Rei's Dad get terminally weird all   
of a sudden?"  
  
There was a strange fascination to watching the elevator go up and up  
and up. "Oh no, it's not you. That guy just registered a nine   
point five on my creep-o-meter," Minako said.  
  
"Maybe we should go up after her," Makoto suggested.   
  
"No way," Minako waved a hand. "Trust me. It's only going to piss  
off Rei's Dad even more if we butt in. Rei can take care of herself.   
She's handled guys a lot tougher than her father."  
  
A shiver went down Usagi's back. "I'm not so sure about that."  
  
***************************************  
  
"They're gay," Hino said to his daughter. The accusation in his tone   
suggested that Rei had arranged this surprise just for him.  
  
For some reason, she found the look of utter outrage on her father's  
face ridiculous. "No, they not 'gay'. Men are gay. Women are  
lesbians."  
  
"You have friends who are homosexuals! How could you allow this sort  
of thing?" he demanded.  
  
Why did she allow herself to get her hopes up about her father, Rei  
wondered? He always reverted back to being an ass sooner or later.  
"Gee Daddy, for some reason Michiru and Haruka have never felt the   
need to ask my permission in regards to their sexual preferences."  
  
"You can't be seen with people like that," Hino stepped closer, his  
soft words giving life to the fire that burned in him. "It could   
ruin me if it's found out that my daughter associates with those kind  
of people. You don't understand. The political world is filled with  
only two kinds of people. There are those who use others and those   
who are used."  
  
"You make it sound so appealing," Rei shot back caustically. "What  
about the ideals of service, of honor and duty? Don't they have any  
place in your so called 'political' world?"  
  
Her father actually laughed, "You are so naïve. Do you really think  
that people like that exist? It's all about power, my dear; who has   
it and who wants it. Well, I want it and I am not going to let your  
misguided altruism damage me." His eyes narrowed and he poked at his  
daughter with his index finger as he spoke. "I forbid you to have   
anything to do with those two gay women publicly. In fact it would  
be best if you completely severed any ties you have with them."  
  
"You forbid me?" Rei asked, her own anger rising now. She pushed his  
hand away from her "I've got a news flash for you. You can't 'forbid  
me' to do anything. Haruka and Michiru are wonderful people and I'm   
not about stop being their friend because of you."   
  
Anger had been in Rokojou's voice, but his sudden, explosive rage   
caught Rei totally by surprise. Her father lashed out, grabbing his  
daughter by the forearm and pushing her back against the wall with  
enough force to make it make the machine sway slightly.  
  
"You'll do what I tell you to do, when I tell you to do it," he   
shouted, twisting her forearm as she spoke. "I am not going to let   
you screw up this election up for me. You have no idea of what I've   
sacrificed to get a chance like this."  
  
"Maybe your soul?" It felt as if he was trying to break her arm, but  
Rei bit back the yelp of pain that came to her lips. She would not   
let him see how much it hurt. "Let go of my arm," she said slowly.  
  
As quickly as it had come, the rage that burned in Hino Rokojou was  
banked. He was trembling with the effort, but let go of Rei's arm.   
She pulled it away, carefully flexing her fingers to make sure that  
they still worked.   
  
"I'm…I'm sorry, Princess," Hino stammered. "I didn't mean to lose my  
temper like that, but you shouldn't have provoked me. You're just   
like your mother, damn it. Always defying me when I know what's best.  
  
The words hit Rei like lightening. She was suddenly dizzy, the edges  
of her vision actually going gray for a second. There was a strange,  
disjointed feeling that this had all happened before. Memories of   
hushed and frenzied voices danced elusively in her head, pain lancing  
through her skull at the ghostly whispers.  
  
"I want to go home," she whispered, her eyes wide with shock.   
  
"Why don't you let me make it up to you with dinner?" Rokojou said in  
a soothing voice. "We could go shopping afterwards and you can pick   
out something pretty – anything you like."  
  
"No," Rei said, shaking her head. "I want to go home." She started   
to push at any button on the control panel that she could reach.   
Panic grabbed at Rei and she wanted nothing more than to get away   
from her father. "I want to go home, now."  
  
With a soft bump, the elevator glided to a halt, the doors sliding   
open. A hand pulled at her again and she looked at her father in   
anger and worst of all, sudden fear.  
  
"You're blowing this way out of proportion. I didn't really hurt you  
that much," Hino seemed puzzled by her behavior.  
  
Rei stepped away from him, pulling her arm free with a jerk. "Don't   
touch me." A rage so intense it bordered on irrational wanted to   
take hold of her. "Don't you ever touch me like that again or by the  
Kami I swear you'll regret it."  
  
"Princess…"  
  
Rei was out of the elevator and moving away from her father before   
she could give into the emotions that tore through her. "Leave me   
alone," she called out, heading for the stairs. "Just leave me   
alone."  
  
***************************************  
  
After saying good-bye to Minako and Makoto, Usagi headed for the   
Crown Fruit Parlor. That she'd worked up an appetite swimming was  
only half the reason she went there. The Crown was on the way home  
that Rei normally took when in this part of the tenth district of   
Tokyo. Over the years she'd come to learn that Rei rarely asked for  
help when she needed it, especially with a personal problem. Usagi's  
intention was to order a very large raspberry-lime rickey and wait to   
see if her friend went by. Most importantly, she wanted to see if   
Rei needed her.  
  
"Usagi?"  
  
The blonde turned with a smile at that voice. She'd known Furuhata  
Motoki for more than a few years. Once upon a time, she'd harbored  
a crush on the sandy haired blonde. That, of course, was before she  
and Mamoru found each other, but she had to admit that he was a very  
handsome man.   
  
"Usagi," Motoki smiled down at her. "Do you have a minute? There's  
something I need to talk to you about."  
  
***************************************  
  
Rei ran all the way back to the temple. She ran from her father and   
from the feelings he provoked in her. She ran from her friends,   
afraid to tell them what just happened. She ran from herself and the  
fear of what she'd say if she started to talk about it. Her lungs  
burned for air but Rei kept running, knowing that if she stopped   
the memories and feelings that ran circles in her brain would catch   
her. Rei wasn't sure of much right now, but the deep seated need to  
push away the emotions that roiled inside her was very strong.   
  
She took the stone stairs two at a time, ignoring the stitch in her  
side and the ache in her soul. Without thinking Rei headed for the  
center of the Hikawa Shrine, the room that held the sacred fire.   
Pushing open the door she tossed aside her shoes and ran in, finally  
collapsing before the bonfire.   
  
"Why does he have to be like this?" she whispered without thinking.  
Her arm was throbbing where he'd grabbed her and Rei glanced at it.  
Bruises were starting to form. The deep purple and blue marks showed   
the imprints of her father's fingers.  
  
"What's wrong with me? What am I doing so wrong that my own father  
doesn't love me?" she whimpered, glancing first at the small family   
altar and the picture of her mother. Her eyes were drawn to the   
Sacred Fire that the Hikawa Shrine was named for.   
  
The great fire had no answers for her tonight and the only reply was   
a sharp pop as a log collapsed into it, fueling the inferno. She   
knelt before the dancing flames, rocking back and forth like a child  
seeking comfort but finding none. Tears ran down Rei's face and for  
once she let them fall without trying to stop them.  
  
"What's wrong with me? Why can't he love me?"  
  
***************************************  
  
A simple philosophy ordered Kudoko Akuma's world. He lived by the   
unshakable idea that there are but two types of creatures in this   
world. There are those who use people and those who are used. Like  
the man that it epitomized this creed was deceptively simple, coldly   
efficient and causally brutal.   
  
"Let me tell you a story," Kudoko said standing in front of the   
window in the offices at the back of Crown Parlor. "Once upon a   
time there was a boy who was the youngest son of a fisherman. He   
lived in a small village that believed it prospered only because a   
god lived among them. This god's demands were quite simple. Every   
year, as the cherry trees were in full bloom, he would pick one child  
to take with him. A boy was chosen one spring, a day before his   
fourteenth birthday. He went willingly with his god, happy to   
sacrifice himself for the good of the only home he'd ever know." A   
hand was raised to the glass in a gesture calculated to appear   
wistful. In the smooth glass surface Kudoko could see Usagi's face  
reflected. He watched her reactions carefully as she sat beside   
Motoki. He told his story in tones measured to gain sympathy.   
  
There were other ideals Kudoko subscribed to and they only served to  
reinforce his central and most sacred principal. If you have the   
most power, then no one can use you, he reasoned. Knowledge was the  
best and most enduring form of power and any means used to obtain it  
are, therefore, justifiable.   
  
That knowledge that Motoki was an old and trusted friend had gained   
Kudoko this chance to manipulate Usagi. He very much doubted that   
without his current toy he'd have Usagi sitting here listening to his  
story. He'd fed from his toy once more just before sending him out  
to collect Usagi. He didn't want to chance having Motoki awaken  
and spoil things.   
  
Kudoko had long ago learned that a lie was best hidden inside  
a truth. He used that bit of knowledge to his advantage. Most of   
what he said was true, but facts such as the carefully planned murder  
of his master and the relish with which he'd preyed on mankind for   
one hundred and fifty years were left out.  
  
Kudoko paused in his tale, taking a slow, deep breath meant to convey  
anguish. A quick glance showed that Usagi had brought her hand to   
her mouth in a gesture of horror. Everything was going as he'd hoped.   
  
The seduction he planned would be a slow process, taking three or   
four days to gain enough control of Usagi to make her take his blood.   
Once that was done Usagi would be compelled do what he required of   
her at the next new moon. He needed her to think she was coming to  
him of her own free will, at least at first. While safer, the more   
gradual process of enthralling Usagi held dangers, too. If the   
Tuxedo Kamen or the Senshi ever got wind of what he was trying to do  
to their Princess, they could make a very quick end to him.   
That was why he'd staged the attack last night. Even from here he   
could see that, as hoped for, the deep gash his late and unlamented   
Yohko had inflicted on the girl was completely healed. There would be  
no tell-tale puncture wounds on her lovely body on the mornings after  
he fed. Slowly, hesitantly, he turned to face Usagi where she sat on  
the couch beside Motoki.   
  
"I need your help, Usagi," he finished, an emotion filled catch in   
his voice inserted at just the right moment. "You're may be my only  
hope to be human again."  
  
Motoki, who had been sitting quietly, came to life. "I've been   
trying to get Akuma-kun to come to you for help for months now. He's  
a nice guy," the blonde youth said with a well timed wink, "But a tad  
nervous about talking to people about his 'condition'."  
  
Giving a chuckle of self-derisive amusement, Kudoko smiled. "Well,   
I'm not exactly the kind of man every mother and father hopes their  
daughter will bring home, Motoki-kun."  
  
Usagi was torn between sympathy for the horrors this man had been   
through and her sense of caution. She glanced at Motoki, knowing   
that he'd never bring her into a situation he considered dangerous.  
Trust won out.  
  
"What exactly did Motoki say I could do for you?" she asked, looking  
at the young blonde man. He hadn't told this stranger that she was   
Sailor Moon had he?  
  
A single eyebrow was raised by Motoki and he looked back at Usagi.  
"I told him that you have a special kind of healing gift. That in   
the past you've been able to drive dark energy out of people who   
have been cursed by it," he replied cautiously.  
  
Narrowing his sea green eyes, Kudoko folded his arms across his   
chest. "I was afraid to believe him before, but even from here I can  
sense the power of light you carry within you." A look calculated to  
simulate hope flickered across Kudoko's face. "It's true, I think.   
You do have the power to lift this curse from me."  
  
"Speaking of which," Usagi put in tentatively, "exactly what kind of  
curse are we talking about here?" She reached for her glass of cold  
soda to take a sip. Everything was happening so fast.  
  
With a sigh, Kudoko lowered his head. He took a long, slow breath.  
When he raised his face once more he had changed – dramatically. His   
eyes were now a glowing red, the pupils slitted like a reptile. Even  
as he opened his mouth to speak fangs slid into place.   
  
"This is what I am, Usagi," he held up both hands when he saw the   
look that crossed her face. "Please, don't be afraid. I won't hurt   
you. I was right, Motoki-kun. Usagi have seen the ones that are   
searching for me." His head was lowered once more and when it lifted  
he appeared normal once more.  
  
With a mental prod Motoki spoke the words he was prompted to. "From   
what Akuma tells me you and the others ran into a member of a sort of 'enforcers' squad. They weren't after Mamoru or you, really. You   
were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."  
  
"Dinner time," Kudoko put in with grim amusement.  
  
"So that woman only wanted Mamo-chan because he was a convenient   
snack. It was nothing personal," Usagi gestured nervously. "Oh that  
makes me feel so much better to know. Thank you."  
  
Akuma gave a warm chuckle at her reaction. "They're here in Tokyo   
looking for me. Not everyone in the undead community is thrilled by  
the idea that I might find a way to break this curse. I don't think  
they know exactly where I am yet, but the very fact that they're in   
the city means I don't have any time to waste."  
  
"How do you think I can help you?" Usagi asked carefully.   
  
This was the critical moment and Akuma was careful to do it just the  
way he'd rehearsed. He went to the end of the small and battered   
couch that dominated a corner of the office and crouched down so that  
he was at eye-level with Usagi. It seemed as if he was doing his best  
to appear non-threatening.   
  
"What I'm proposing is this. You carry your healing magic in all   
parts of you – even your blood." Slowly, very slowly, he reached out  
to take her hand, encouraged when Usagi didn't pull away. "This   
curse was laid on me by blood and only by blood can it be removed. If  
you'll let me, I want to take a little bit of yours for four or five  
days. At the end of that time I'll either be on the way to a cure or  
I'll know it won't work."  
  
There was such gentle desperation in his eyes, Usagi thought as she  
looked into them. They were deep too, and she felt as if she could   
lose herself in their regard. "And if I say no?" she asked.  
  
Kudoko gave her hand a gallant kiss before releasing it. "Then I'll  
disappear into the night and you'll never see me again," he said   
standing up. "I won't risk anyone else being hurt because of me.   
In the time I've been here I've become very attached to some of the  
people around me. The creatures who are looking for me consider love  
a weakness. They'd use anyone I care for against me in an instant."  
  
He was talking about Rei, Usagi suddenly knew. "Is that why you work  
so hard to tick Rei-chan off – to keep her at a safe distance?"  
  
"You've noticed, ne?" Kudoko glanced at Usagi over his shoulder, a   
sad smile on his lips. "I could fall in love with her so easily, but  
I don't dare." He turned his back to Usagi once more. "Not when I'm  
like this. Rei deserves a prince, not a monster like me."   
  
Getting off the couch, Usagi went to Kudoko. "You're not a monster.  
It's what in a person's heart that counts, not what they look like."  
  
Her words made him smile in satisfaction. Usagi was reacting exactly  
the way he wanted her to. He made sure his face was calm when he   
turned to face her once more.  
  
"Thank you. I wish I could give you a couple of days to think this   
over, but with the enforcers so close by I can't." His hands were   
stuffed into his pocket in a manner that radiated suppressed anxiety.  
"I need your answer now. If you can't or won't help me, then I have  
to leave Tokyo as fast as I can."  
  
"Now?" Usagi almost stumbled over the word in surprise.   
  
"This is why I suggested including me in this conversation," Motoki  
said. "Usagi, you know me and I think you trust me. I'll be right   
here the whole time. I'd never let anything bad happen to you."  
  
Doubt flickered in Usagi's eyes. "I should really talk this over   
with Mamo-chan before I do anything. This is all happening a little  
fast for me."  
  
Kudoko quietly moved between Usagi and the door while he forced   
Motoki to say the required words. If she refused to help him he'd  
have to take Usagi fast and hard. He wasn't at all sure that she'd  
survive the experience.  
  
"You can tell Mamoru in the morning," Motoki said in a soft voice.  
  
"You can tell anyone you want to in order to feel safe," Kudoko added  
with the perfect amount of concern. "I want you to do this willingly  
or not at all. If I was going to force you to do this I would have   
jumped you as soon as you came in the door, Usagi."  
  
Usagi looked at Motoki, then back at Kudoko. He was right, she knew.  
If he'd wanted to hurt her he could have done so long before now.   
This man was asking for her help, for a chance to live a normal life.  
How could she say no?  
  
"I'll do what I can to help you," she said, nodding her head.  
  
Tears brightened the green eyes of Kudoko Akuma. "I'll never be able  
to thank you enough, Usagi. Whatever happens, whether this works or  
not, you have my eternal gratitude."   
  
Trepidation crept into the crystal blue eyes. "So, what do I have to  
do?"  
  
"That's the easy part," Akuma replied with a light laugh. "All you   
need to do is relax."  
  
"It's okay, Usagi," Motoki said slowly. He blinked several times as  
if he had something in his eye. "I'm right here."  
  
"Just look at me, ne?" Kudoko gently took her by the chin and caught  
her gaze. "I want you to listen to my voice, Usagi."   
  
His eyes were a vivid green, Usagi noticed, and very deep too. She   
began to feel slightly lightheaded but it wasn't unpleasant at all.  
It reminded her of the moments just before she fell asleep after a   
long, hard day. The world fell away from Usagi and there was nothing  
but those endless green eyes and the sound of his voice   
  
Kudoko felt the moment he made tenuous contact with her mind and   
smiled softly. "There won't be any pain if you just listen to my   
voice. That's it," The vampire's tone was soothing even as he had a  
brief flash of images from her. "You've been having nightmares,   
haven't you?"  
  
"I don't like them," Usagi replied in a soft voice. Normally it was  
painful to even think about the dreams, but nothing seemed quite real  
right now. "It hurts to remember."  
  
Kudoko tilted his head, a look of calculated sympathy crossing his   
handsome face. "Poor girl," he said gently, never taking his eyes  
from hers. "I can make them stop if you'll let me. Would like that,   
Usagi? Do you want me to make the bad dreams go away?"  
  
"Please…" desperation in her breathless reply. Usagi wanted it so  
badly in that moment that she'd do anything.  
  
"Then just relax and let the pain go. That's it," he coxed her   
gently. Fangs were revealed in a cold smile when her eyes slid  
shut. "I'm just going to kiss you, Usagi. You liked to be kissed  
don't you?" He leaned down, whispering in her ear. Kudoko could   
feel her pulse beneath his fingers as he ran a hand down her throat.  
"Just a kiss." Gently Kudoko pushed the corners of her open collar  
away from her shoulder, carefully choosing a spot where he wouldn't   
hit a major vein. Curling his lips, he lowered his head and began to  
drink, slowly at first.  
  
Usagi made a soft, surprised noise at the sensations the vampire's  
kiss engender in her. It felt almost as if Mamo-chan was kissing   
her. A sweet and warm tingling started to fill her body and she   
sighed, not protesting when Kudoko slid his arms around her.  
  
He began to suckle more aggressively on the wound, speeding the flow  
of blood into his mouth. The gentle sensations suddenly mounted in  
intensity and without warning the sweet tingling exploded into a   
sensual tidal wave that swamped the unprepared Usagi in a heartbeat.  
She could only gasp in shock while a thin ribbon of blood that   
escaped Kudoko's lips seeped down her shoulder.   
  
She started to tremble from the sensory overload. Kudoko tightened   
his grip, making sure Usagi didn't fall away from him. The vampire  
at last lifted his head from her shoulder and saw that Usagi was   
leaning against him, unresisting and all but insensible in his   
embrace. Tonight he would have less than a minute before her mind  
shook off his influence. That should be just long enough for his   
purposes.   
  
"You won't remember the nightmares anymore Usagi, but you will   
remember just how good I made you feel tonight." Kudoko let his   
tongue run slowly over the punctures to stop the bleeding. He smiled  
when she gave an involuntary shiver. The delectable combination of   
power and pleasure laced her blood and he savored the taste. "You   
don't want to tell anyone about this, especially Mamoru. He wouldn't understand."   
  
"Wouldn't understand," Usagi mumbled just before she gave a shudder   
and with a start against him, came back to herself. "Is it over?"  
she asked, blinking owlishly.  
  
"Yes, that's it," Kudoko helped Usagi steady herself. "Are you all  
right?"  
  
"Just a little sleepy," Usagi replied, putting a hand to her head  
trying to focus her mind. She felt amazingly relaxed, as if she   
could drift off to sleep here and now.   
  
Motoki, who had been sitting motionless on the couch came to life at  
the vampire's mental prodding. "Why don't I help you get home,   
Usagi? Mamoru-kun would never forgive me if something happened to   
you."  
  
"Thank you, Usagi," Kudoko Akuma took her hand and gave it a genteel  
kiss. "You will make it possible for me to fulfill a dream I've   
cherished for longer than I can remember." He looked up at her with  
hooded eyes, a smile coming to his lips.   
  
Kudoko's seduction of the Moon Princess was proceeding as planned.   
Within days he'd have complete control over her and most importantly,  
over the power she possessed. Now that he'd taken the necessary   
first steps with Usagi, Kudoko had the luxury of going after the   
woman he truly wanted. His pursuit of Hino Rei could now begin in  
earnest.  
  
***************************************  
  
  
In three weeks – Some of the secrets of Rei's past are brought out   
into the open. Will the truth set Rei free – or will it destroy her?  
  
Next Week –The last book of the Crystal Tokyo trilogy that started   
with "Fatal Exposure" and continued in "Full Circle" begins and is   
called "The Quest". Be here in one week for chapter one – "Rude   
Awakenings"! 


	4. Chapter Four

******************************  
  
"Seduction"  
  
By Meara  
  
Chapter Four  
  
*****************************  
  
The heavy morning air was filled with the sound of the insects that  
lived in the relative wilderness of the Shrine grounds. Their   
pleasant song predicted another hot and humid day in this long   
summer. It was best to do anything that required physical activity  
as early as possible. Rei was finishing the last of her sweeping as   
Okibi Souji came from the prayer room. He slide the paper door   
closed behind him and simply stood and watched his beautiful grand-  
daughter.   
  
The day had begun before dawn when he was awakened by the sound of  
Rei cursing. He poked his head out his bedroom window to see his  
granddaughter, long, loose hair flowing behind her, stomping across  
the courtyard towards a trash can. Still mumbling darkly she ripped  
the lid open and shoved a single, white rose into it. If the flower  
was some kind of peace offering it hadn't worked, Souji mused. The  
bad temper the gift had roused in Rei was worked off as she threw  
herself into her chores. It was more than just the unwanted gift  
that had her upset. Souji knew Rei well enough to see that she was  
trying to run from emotions she didn't want to deal with. Spending  
time with her father tended to leave her this way. The old man some-  
times wondered if his son-in-law ever realized what he was doing to   
his daughter. He doubted it.   
  
From one of the largest of the ancient trees came two large, black   
crows, calling out in their cacophonous way. The sound broke into   
the old man's thoughts and he looked up to see Rei put down the broom.  
With a delighted laugh, she let one of them come to rest on her out  
stretched arm. The bird settled and turned its head from side to   
side making little noises as it did so. She stroked the ebony   
feathers gently, whispering words of affection to her avian friend.   
The other crow, not to be outdone, landed on Rei's shoulder and used  
its large beak to tug playfully at her hair. It was an enchanting   
scene and one that brought back memories of the first time Rei had  
claimed the two crows as her own. That had been such a sad day, but   
one that gave him a reason for living again after the death of his   
beloved wife and daughter.  
  
Okibi Souji closed his eyes and remembered.  
  
  
  
The sound of Rei cursing again brought the old man back to the here   
and now. He snapped out of his memories to see his granddaughter   
staring into a long, ornate, box. The delivery man in the brown  
uniform was scampering away from Rei as fast as he could. Phobos and  
Demos launched themselves from her, heading for the relative safety   
of the tree while Rei stomped to the nearest trashcan and ripped the  
lid off. Carefully removing the single, white, long stemmed rose  
she shoved in it.   
  
"What part of 'leave me alone' don't understand?!" Rei shouted at the  
receptacle. The box and card quickly followed before she slammed the  
lid back on.   
  
"Has the trashcan somehow offended you, little girl?" Souji asked,  
smiling at her. She looked so much like his Yuriko when she got  
angry – full of life and fire.  
  
The remark seemed to bank the fires that burned in the young Miko.  
"There's this guy, Kudoko Akuma," Rei growled as she said the name,  
"and he's trying to get me to like him. I've told him to drop dead,  
but he just won't take the hint. This is the third white rose just  
this morning."  
  
Somehow Souji knew that Rei wasn't kidding about her conversation   
with the young man in question. He had little doubt that she'd used  
those exact words, too. Either the boy was hopelessly in love with  
Rei or he had a death wish.   
  
"Well, try not to be too hard on the boy, Rei. After all, if he   
likes you then he must have good taste, ne?" Souji chuckled. Rei   
rolled her eyes, but he could see a smile tugging at her mouth. "Are  
you still planning to go shopping with your friends this afternoon?"  
  
"Yep," Rei answered happily. "Daddy put some extra money in my  
account before he left. I think this is his way of apologizing to me  
for losing his temper. At any rate, I'm going to do my part to help   
the economy by getting out there and spending it. We're planning on  
having dinner out at one of the cyber-café's so we can IM Ami in the  
US."   
  
The old man's gaze flitted briefly on the bruises on Rei's arm. They  
were staring to heal a little now after two days, ugly yellows at the   
edges of the deep purple fingerprints. When Souji had first seen   
them his heart burned with anger. Hino Rokojou hadn't changed at all.  
In keeping with his well established pattern her father had left the   
city without so much as a goodbye the very next morning.   
  
"I don't suppose Daddy told you when he might be back?" Rei asked   
tentatively. She was still angry at her father but thought that she   
was at least partially to blame for what had happened. She knew her  
father had a bad temper, she'd inherited it after all. How could she  
have been so stupid as to provoke him like that?   
  
In the eyes of her grandfather Rei was suddenly a little girl again.   
"No, he didn't little girl," he patted her arm gently.   
  
Souji knew the moment he'd seen the bruises on Rei's arm that he had  
run out of options. There was nothing left but the truth. A truth he  
feared that would hurt Rei more than the lie she'd been living for   
almost fifteen years. When Hino Rokojou came back, this time there   
would a reckoning.  
  
"But not for a long while, I hope."  
  
***************************************  
  
There were very few sights that could transfix Chiba Mamoru so   
thoroughly. He stood, his arms folded loosely over his chest and  
leaned against the door frame to his very small kitchen. Usagi had  
yet to notice that he'd returned from his errand, so intent was she  
on her task. She had her portable CD player on and was humming   
happily as she tipped the measuring cup of batter carefully, pouring  
small dollops of it into the all ready hot pan. Her back to Mamoru,   
Usagi broke into song and danced in place. It was an English tune,  
Mamoru realized, at least it was supposed to be. Usagi's grasp of   
the language was not very good, but she didn't let that stop her as   
she reached for the spatula. The pancakes had risen nicely and were  
ready to be turned. Slipping the Teflon coated instrument under one,  
she belted out her tune.  
  
"There will come a day, somewhere far away. In my arms you'll stay,"  
lost in the music, Usagi gave a small spin. "My only…" and saw   
Mamoru watching her, "L…aaarrgghh! Mamo-chan, how long have you been  
there?!"  
  
  
  
Breaking into delighted laughter the dark haired prince of Earth   
tilted his head to one side. "When you offered to come over and make   
me breakfast I didn't know that a floor show was included." He walked  
into the small kitchen in his apartment. Shaking the carton of orange  
juice Usagi had sent him out for, he set it on the table. "So to what  
do I owe the honor of having you cook for me?"  
  
"Mom went with Dad on business trip for the weekend and Shingo is off  
at baseball camp. Luna is with Artemis doing some research," she   
replied taking off the discman. Usagi grabbed a plate and started to  
put the golden brown pancakes on it. She handed it to Mamoru. "I  
just thought we could spend some time together and this was a good  
way to do that."  
  
"You're in a good mood this morning, Usako." He sat down in one of  
the chairs around the small table. It did his heart good to see her  
like this, so happy and full of life.   
  
Popping a bottle of syrup in the middle of the round table Usagi   
motioned for Mamoru to take some of the pancakes. "Well, I've been  
sleeping a lot better the past couple of nights."  
  
"No nightmares?" Mamoru asked carefully. He wanted to know but   
didn't want to push Usagi to hard. "Hey, these are really good. Did  
your mother make the batter?"  
  
"No, I haven't had any of the dreams and no," she looked slightly   
annoyed, "I made the batter. It's a recipe that Mako-chan gave me.   
The trick is to put in a tablespoon of brown sugar and a little   
vanilla."   
  
Mamoru long ago discovered that if he smiled at Usagi in the right  
way she'd tell him just about anything. He gave her that charming  
smile, seeing the way she melted at it with relief. "So what brought  
about this change?"  
  
"I've been helping out a friend with a problem." She glanced at   
Mamoru, wanting to tell him about Kudoko Akuma but still strangely   
hesitant. A little voice inside Usagi said that Mamo-chan wouldn't   
understand about the "help" she was giving him. "It feels good to be  
able to make a difference in someone's life."  
  
To be honest, she'd been more than a little nervous about the idea of  
letting Kudoko Akuma take her blood when it had been proposed to her.   
If Motoki hadn't been there to vouch for Akuma then she'd more than   
likely have pulled out her power teir and dusted the poor man on the  
spot. Considering her first reaction to Akuma's "condition", Usagi  
decided that telling Mamo-chan and the others wasn't such a good   
idea, after all. They wouldn't understand. She could just hear how  
that conversation would go.  
  
~Yes, Akuma is a vampire, and yes I am letting him use me for a light  
snack, but it's not what you think, guys. Granted, he doesn't have a  
pulse right now but that doesn't make the man a monster. He wants to   
be human again and I'm helping to cleanse him of the curse of   
vampirism.~  
  
Considering how Rei felt about Kudoko Akuma, she'd probably reduce  
him to ashes after the first sentence. Then again, Usagi doubted   
that she'd even get past the "light snack" part of her explanation   
with the Soldiers of the Outer planets. Usagi knew that the she   
could sum up Haruka's solution to Akuma's problem in two words –   
World Shaking. Tonight would be the third time she'd let Akuma take  
a little of her blood. She had to admit that it wasn't at all   
unpleasant – just the opposite. In fact, it felt so very good and   
effected her in such a sensual way that Usagi was a little guilty   
about it all. Akuma had explained that it was just a side effect of  
his taking her blood, but it still made her blush to think about it.   
  
"You've always made a difference in my life, Usako," Mamoru said,   
giving her that smile again as he finished up the last of his break-  
fast.   
  
He was amazingly handsome, Usagi thought. That brought her back to   
the real reason she'd come here this morning. She let her foot move  
under the table and find his leg. "That's me, bringing joy and   
happiness where ever I go." She started to run her foot up and down   
his calf. "Did I mention that my folks are out of town and I have no  
where I have to be for several hours?"  
  
"Ummm, really?" Mamoru asked, swallowing a mouthful of juice.  
  
Usagi rose from her chair and took the glass from his hand, placing it  
on the table and herself in his lap. Letting one arm curl around his   
shoulder, the other hand then slipped under his shirt. The look on   
her face was unmistakable. Her fingers danced nimbly down his body   
and the knowledge what was happening here filtered through the   
hormones that were racing to take control of his brain.   
  
"Usako, are you trying to seduce me?" he asked with delight.   
  
She blushed a bright red. "Well, yes… Am I doing it right?"  
  
It took all of Mamoru's control not to melt into a small puddle  
as her hands continued their sensual dance. "Oh yes, you're doing  
just great."  
  
"You'll tell me if I do anything wrong?" she asked in a teasing  
voice. This was more fun than she'd imagined it would be!  
  
Mamoru's started to place passionate kisses down the length of her  
neck. Two could play at this game. "You'll be the first to know."  
The scoop necked shirt Usagi was wearing was no impediment to his   
demanding lips and he didn't pause in his sweet explorations of her  
very willing body.   
  
It was just as Mamoru reached the hollow where her shoulder and neck  
met that it happened. His lips brushed Usagi's skin and a strange   
tingling filled him. Mamoru opened his eyes and for a fraction of a   
second he thought he saw two bleeding wounds at the base of her   
neck. He blinked and they gone, the skin once more smooth. But  
as he looked closer, Mamoru could have sworn he saw the faintest hint   
of discoloration, as if a bruise was in the last stages of healing.  
  
(What the hell was that?) Mamoru's wondered. The answer to his   
question would have to wait. Usagi's clever hands reached their  
ultimate destination and every other thought seeped out of his brain   
like wine through a cheesecloth. He swept her up in his arms,   
capturing her lips for a lingering kiss that left her breathless.  
  
They headed for the bedroom. "Breakfast was wonderful. Let me show  
you how grateful I can be for home cooking," he laughed and closed   
the door behind him with his foot.  
  
"Oh Mamo-chan," came Usagi's decadent sigh as they fell together to  
the bed. "If this is how you react to pancakes, I can't wait to make  
you an omelet."  
  
**************************************  
  
The call came at four in the afternoon, well after Rei had left. It  
was pure luck (if you could call it that, Souji grumbled) that he was  
in Rei's room dropping off clean laundry when the telephone rang.   
When the answering machine picked up, he was on his way out the door.  
What he heard made the old man stop in his tracks.  
  
"Hello Princess, it's Daddy," came the bland baritone of Hino Rokojou.  
"I'm back and I just wanted to call and let you know that what happened  
the other night was a fluke. I've been under a lot of stress and I   
guess it got the better of me for a minute. Why don't you let me   
take you out to dinner tonight? Oh, and don't tell your Grandfather   
about this, ne?"  
  
The old pattern hadn't changed, Souji thought with a mixture of anger  
and disgust. The outburst of violence was followed by an apology, a   
gift and then the promise that this would never happen again. It   
always did, of course, because the underlying problem was never   
addressed, only temporarily assuaged.   
  
"No more," Souji mumbled, reaching over to erase the message from  
Rei's machine. "I'm putting a stop top this once and for all."  
  
***************************************  
  
Kudoko Akuma woke from the sleep that was not truly sleep with a   
start. He was confused and frightened for an instant and, looking   
around the dark bedroom, almost expecting to see the Master standing  
there. Throwing the covers away from his body, Kudoko rose and   
stumbled out the room he "slept" in. The movement seemed to clear   
the nightmare images from his mind and he remembered at last that the  
Master gone; burned to dust by the sun.   
  
There was a single, dim light on in the living room and it cast its  
paltry glow on the large ink on silk painting that dominated one   
wall. Akuma was, as always, drawn to it. He ran a hand over the   
cool, smooth glass that covered his treasure. It had been the better  
part of a hundred years since Kudoko had managed to arrange a painful  
for the Master. But the monster that made him what he was continued  
to have a hold on him that Kudoko was unable to shake. Even now   
dreams of the days when he was enslaved to the Master were able to  
invoke a primal and unrelenting terror in him.   
  
"My pretty toy," came the Master's voice in his memory, "my beautiful  
pet. You know you can't fight me. I own you, toy, body and soul."   
Akuma closed his eyes and shuddered. He could still feel the cold  
touch the vampire's hand on him, the despair that filled his life as   
he was forced yet again to do what his Master wanted.   
  
Akuma had fought back in a battle that lasted years and that, in the   
end, he had lost. The power the Master had was too great for any   
mortal to break. For seven long years that Akuma had been seduced,  
tortured and humiliated by turns, all at the ancient vampire's whim.   
But Kudoko Akuma learned the brutal lessons his Master taught him all  
too well. Power was all that truly mattered because power could keep  
you safe. Unless you were the one in control, you would soon become   
a victim again and that fate must be avoided at all costs. That was   
the one, driving compulsion that set Kudoko on the path he now walked.   
  
With a final glance at his childhood home, Kudoko Akuma moved on.   
Motoki had been here and a bottle was on the coffee table, a delicate   
crystal wine glass next to it. Pouring himself a generous dram,   
Kudoko Akuma sat back and considered his plans.   
  
It was quite possible that the power of the Ginzuishou could tear a  
small rip in the fabric of the great Seal of Light that held the   
demon he was dealing with trapped. That which can make a Seal can   
break a Seal, Kudoko knew. The attempt, whether or not it was   
successful would kill Usagi and that was something of a pity, he   
mused. The small bits of information he'd gleaned about the Silver  
Crystal all said that it was a mystic tool of unimaginable potential.  
The idea of having a toy with that kind of power was tempting but,   
Kudoko knew, much too dangerous. No, it was much better to try and   
free the demon. If the Seal was broken, he'd have dominion over the  
Earth in the demon's name. That would mean he'd never have to fear   
being used or abused by anyone ever again. If the attempt to break   
the Seal failed then he'd lost nothing. For all the demon's threats  
Kudoko didn't believe for a minute that he was in any danger. If   
the Seal was unbroken then the demon was still trapped and, therefore,  
no threat to him. That didn't, however, mean that Kudoko planned on   
coming away from this whole affair without a suitable reward.  
  
Leaning forward to refill his glass one more time, Kudoko picked  
up a picture of Sailor Mars from the top of the coffee table. A   
single finger traced the curves of her body. His original intent had  
been to seduce and enthrall the one who held the Ginzuishou. Years  
of careful planning had gone out the window the moment he first laid  
eyes on Hino Rei. From her flowing midnight tresses to her porcelain   
skin, she was everything he'd ever found desirable in a woman and he   
intended to claim as his own. Kudoko Akuma knew that he was very   
handsome. Every woman he'd every wanted had easily fallen to his   
physical charms. That Rei continued to resist his advances only made   
the need to have her all the more intense.  
  
Kudoko's experiences with the Master had left him with both the   
compulsive need to be in control and the uncanny ability to spot   
others who had been abused. Rei had been abused, that he was sure   
of. There was such anger in her, such wonderful passion that burned   
in her exquisite violet eyes. He would show her how to mold that   
rage, to embrace it and let it give her the power to become like the   
phoenix of legend. Rei would rise from the ashes of her present life  
to take her revenge on the one who had hurt her. Once he'd freed   
that inferno of darkness Rei would be ready to take her place as his  
eternal companion.  
  
A smile came to his lips and he paused before taking another sip from  
the wine glass. He closed green eyes as he imagined Rei's blood   
flowing into his mouth. Kudoko knew that she'd taste like fire, hot  
and savory. It took a great deal of self discipline to have to wait.  
Patience was a virtue, he told himself. One that would make her   
eventual surrender to him all that much sweeter.  
  
***************************************  
  
Okibi Souji felt out place among the lavish, western trappings of the  
apartment he stood in and he thanked the Kami for small favors. His  
traditional dress was in stark contrast to the reproduction Louis XIV  
chairs and the rococo wall hangings. Souji sniffed distastefully,   
adjusting the manila envelope he carried under one arm. From the   
furniture to the paintings to the grossly out of place crystal   
chandelier, the décor was an exercise in conspicuous consumption.   
  
"This visit is a surprise, Souji," Hino Rokojou commented as he   
entered the living room.   
  
"Rei is busy this evening so I thought you and I could have a long  
overdue chat," the elderly priest replied evenly. "I thought our   
deal was quite clear. You stay away from Rei and I stay away from  
the press."  
  
Hino settled into a large cherry wood chair. He leaned over to pour   
himself a drink from the ceramic carafe on the nearby table. He had   
the look of a man of who felt he held all the cards. "That was your  
deal, old man. I've allowed your delusions to rule my life too long.  
I've got a real chance to make something of myself here and I'm not   
about to let you screw it up for me."  
  
For a long moment Souji studied the large folder in his hands. "The  
only delusional person here is you. I will not let you do to Rei   
what you did to my daughter. This is the only warning I will give   
you. Go back to America and stay out of Rei's life or face the   
consequences."  
  
Taking a long sip of the coffee Hino studied his father-in-law. "My   
wife died on wet road on a night she never should have been driving   
on in the first place. What happened to Miya was a terrible accident  
but that was over a dozen years ago. It's old news."  
  
"I think the press would be very interested to hear about what you   
did to my daughter, even today," the tiny frame shook with contained  
anger. "And the people in the Liberal Democratic party even more so.  
We both know why she was driving out in that storm the night she   
died."  
  
The cup came down sharply on the table top, splashing some of the   
contents. "Miya died because she wouldn't listen to me; because she  
went crying to you over a stupid misunderstanding. For God's sake   
it's not like what I did was so shocking. Miya was the hysterical   
type and occasionally needed a slap or two to bring her back to her  
senses."  
  
"A slap or two?" the diminutive man repeated softly. "Just like your  
own father used to do to your mother, to you? Is that why you felt   
it was alright to beat your wife and your child?"  
  
Hino Rokojou snarled, his face turning a dark red with rage. "That's  
slander. If you try to go to the press I'll have you in court for   
everything you own. Cross me and I'll make sure that old temple of   
yours is sold for land it's on. Do you have any idea how many   
developers want that parcel – what they'd pay me for it?"  
  
There was no fear in the old priest's eyes. "Believe or not, money   
isn't everything to some people. If it would save Rei from you I'd   
burn the place to the ground myself."  
  
Hino got out of the chair, stalking to look down at the much smaller   
man. "You don't get it do you? You can't win here. If you go to   
the press with your wild, unsubstantiated stories, I'll ruin you.   
For a dozen years you've bullied me with threats but have never once  
shown me any kind of proof. You know why? Because you don't have   
any proof. I didn't beat Miya or Rei!"  
  
While Hino spoke Souji reached under his arm and opened the manila   
  
envelope he carried. Rokojou hadn't finished ranting when he pulled  
out the first item. It was a large, grainy picture, black and white.  
He turned it over so that Hino could see what he held.  
  
The woman in the picture may have been young, it was hard to tell.   
Her face was bruised and swollen, one eye so puffy it was shut. She   
didn't look at the camera but down at the floor instead, shame in   
every line of her body.   
  
All of the fight seemed to flow out Hino like water from a broken   
glass. "Oh Kami," he whispered, "Miya." Anger quickly returned and  
he ripped the photograph out of the old man's hands.   
  
"Go ahead," Okibi Souji said with a hint of disgust in voice that was  
hard to control. "Rip it up if you want. It's only a copy and I've   
got lots of more where that came from."  
  
Tipping the envelope a half a dozen more pictures fell out. All of   
them of the same young woman and her bruised and battered body. A   
study of horror in black and white floated slowly down onto the   
expensive wooden flooring. Hino Rokojou's face went gray at the very  
sight of them.   
  
"Oh Miya, why did you make me do that?" he asked in hushed tone.   
Hino's black eyes narrowed, his mind turning over fast and furious.  
"You want something, don't you old man? All right then, how much   
money will it take to make sure these pictures go back into whatever   
dark place you pulled them out of?"  
  
Tossing the now empty envelope away in a careless fashion, Okibi   
Souji turned to walk away without a word. His son-in-law lived was  
world where everything had a price and he couldn't seem to grasp the  
simple concept that money couldn't solve all his problems. Okibi   
Souji knew that he should have pity for a man who would sell even his  
soul for the right price. Hino Rokojou was more alone in this well  
furnished hell than anyone else he knew of.  
  
"Every one had a price, Souji," Hino called after him. "Answer me,  
damn you. What do you want?!"  
  
The priest paused and glanced over his shoulder. "What I want is for  
you to feel the pain you've caused both my daughter and granddaughter.  
What I'll settle for is to have you leave Tokyo and never see Rei   
again. I was too late to save my sweet daughter from you, but I will  
not let you have a chance to destroy Rei."  
  
The elderly priest left the door open behind him, not caring what   
other people may think of his abrupt exit. Hino Rokojou stood with  
his hands balled into fists at his side. Okibi Souji was simply   
being vindictive. Everyone knew that Rokojou had loved Miya. He'd  
worked hard to give both his wife and daughter the finer things in   
life. They would have been so happy if not for in-laws. They filled  
Miya's head with non-sense to the point where she had never truly   
understood her proper place in life. It was his right, no his duty,  
as Miya's husband to chastise her when it was necessary. What he had   
done wasn't so shocking. It went on in countless homes not only   
across Japan, but across the world.  
  
Fear faded before the intense anger that filled him. Hino Rokojou   
had spent over a dozen years working in places that no one else would.   
With a nod of his head and the appropriate bow he'd let himself be   
assigned to one small diplomatic mission after the other in order to  
  
pay his dues. Now he was about to reap the rewards of faithful   
service to his party and Okibi Souji was trying to ruin it for him.  
He was not going to let that happen.  
  
***************************************  
  
Rei let the telephone ring for a good five minutes before finally   
giving up. She placed it back on the hook with a sigh. It was more  
than a little strange that there was no one at the Shrine. But then  
again, way her life had been going lately, strange had become the   
order of the day. A shadow caught her attention and she looked   
quickly out of the corner of her eye. She knew without fully seeing  
him that it was Kudoko Akuma.  
  
"I have no interest in anything you could possibly want to say. Go   
away and leave me alone," she waved him off without even looking at  
him.   
  
A snort of amusement came to her ears. "I haven't said anything yet.  
How can you know that you're not interested?"  
  
Knowing it was a mistake, but unable to resist the impulse, Rei   
turned to face Kudoko. He was good looking, she had to admit. Not  
too tall with an athletic build, he had a face like an angel. But   
there was something about those green eyes that Minako was so fond of  
that made her shiver whenever she looked into them.  
  
"That's easy," she replied in a deceptively light voice. "I have   
absolutely no interest in anything you can say, because I have   
absolutely no interest in you – and I never will. Now be a good boy  
and take the hint and go away."  
  
Stepping in front of Rei, Kudoko looked into her exquisite violet   
eyes, trying ever so subtly to influence her. "Why won't you give me  
a chance, beautiful Rei? You might find I'm not the guy you think I   
am."  
  
Rei's eyes narrowed. There was something simultaneously alluring and  
eminently creepy about the incredibly handsome young man. "Really?   
I think I know exactly who and what you are, Kudoko Akuma," she said   
softly.  
  
Whether it was her words or the way Rei managed to shut out his   
mental probes, Kudoko was brought up short. If his heart had still  
been capable of beating, it would have been racing in his chest.   
  
"And what am I?" he asked, suddenly serious.   
  
"Let's see," Rei began to tick off points on her fingers. "You're  
arrogant, annoying and pig-headed. Oh, and let's not forget my very  
favorite thing about you! You can't seem to understand that 'no',   
doesn't mean 'maybe' or 'try again later'." She leaned closer to him.  
"Now pay very close attention to me and see if you can manage to   
grasp this simple concept. I don't like you. I have never liked you  
and I will never like you. My fondest wish is for the Earth to open   
up and swallow you whole. Leave me alone, you moron!"  
  
Turning on her heel, Rei walked away from Kudoko. He watched her   
head back to the table where her friends waited for her. A sour  
feeling roiled in the pit of his stomach and it took Kudoko a moment  
to identify it – frustration. This was not the way the game of   
seduction he was so good at was usually played. He'd pursue a woman;  
she'd make a token protest, then give in to his irresistible charms.  
The idea that Rei might not be playing a game, that she truly wanted   
nothing to do with him, flickered across his mind . It didn't matter  
what Rei thought she wanted, Kudoko decided. She couldn't know what  
he was offering her as his consort – eternal youth and power beyond   
anything she'd ever imagined. She could lead him as merry a chase as   
she wanted to. The outcome was all ready predetermined. He would   
have Hino Rei. Willingly if possible, unwillingly if he had to, but   
he would have her.   
  
***************************************  
  
Rei was in rare form by the time she got back to the table that she   
and her friends always sat at when they came to the Crown. Mumbling  
darkly and letting increasingly violent fantasies about toasting her  
unwanted suitor fill her head, Rei didn't notice that it wasn't   
Minako and Makoto that she was sitting next to when she slid onto the  
bench. Giving her best growl of annoyance she let her head flop down  
onto her arms.  
  
"That man is a total ass!" she snarled. Without looking she reached  
out and grabbed what she thought was Minako's arm, giving it a   
squeeze. "I don't know why you like him, but you can have Kudoko   
Akuma and his wonderful, green eyes with my blessing!"  
  
"Do you really think he's my type?" Michiru replied stifling a giggle.  
  
That voice made Rei's head snap back up. Her hand was still on   
Michiru's arm and she snatched it back in an instant. "Mich…  
Michiru?" she stumbled over the name, turning a brighter shade of red  
with each passing second. "Oh Kami-sama…"  
  
The aqua haired Senshi of Neptune craned her head in order to get a   
good look at Kudoko Akuma. "Well, he is good looking, but a little  
too short for my tastes."  
  
"Where did Minako and Makoto go, Usagi?" Rei demanded, out-raged.   
  
It didn't help matter any for Rei to see that Usagi was laughing so  
hard that she was about to pass the last of her drink through her   
nose. "Home," she managed to squeak out.  
  
Haruka arched an eyebrow at her lifemate. "Please remember that   
you're all ready spoken for, Michiru." She barely glanced at the  
shadowy corner that Kudoko liked to lurk in while he watched Rei.  
"Don't make me go over there and fight that guy for your favor, ne?"  
  
Tears were now running from Usagi's eyes and she stuffed a napkin   
over her face making small gasping sounds of amusement. Rei grimaced  
and flicked a finger on the blonde's forehead. "I'm so glad you're  
enjoying this. If you're going to beat him up Haruka-san, can I   
watch?"  
  
I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Usagi gasped, finally getting her mirth under  
control. "Both Minako and Makoto have been trying to get Akuma to   
notice them all summer but he only seems to have eyes for Rei."  
  
"He's an arrogant jerk," Rei repeated, refusing to turn and look at  
Kudoko. She could feel his eyes on her and gave an involuntary  
shiver.  
  
"Oh come on, Rei-chan," Usagi wheedled. "Give the guy a break. He's  
really very nice when you get to know him."  
  
"I don't want to get to know him and neither should you. You can't  
save every lost soul that crosses your path Usagi," Rei snapped back  
harsher than she'd meant to. "When are you going to grow up and   
realize that?"  
  
"I just want you to find a prince of your own, Rei-chan," Usagi knew  
she shouldn't have teased Rei, but her friend's word stung.   
  
There was regret in the violet eyes. "I know, but it's not going to  
be Kudoko Akuma. There's something about the guy that gives me the   
creeps." She glanced at her watch, tired. "Look it's been a long  
day, so I'm going to follow Mako and Minako's example and go home."  
  
"We're heading in that direction if you'd like a ride," Michiru   
offered.  
  
"How about you, Neko-chan?" Haruka asked. "Need a ride home?"  
  
Usagi shook her head, "No thanks. I've got to talk to Motoki about  
something. You guys go ahead."  
  
Rei felt badly about snapping at Usagi. "Usagi, I've got some new  
manga you haven't read. Do you want to come over tomorrow and look  
at them? If it's hot we can call Minako and Mako and hit the baths."  
  
Usagi knew that this was Rei's way of apologizing. "Sounds like a   
plan to me."  
  
"The baths?" Haruka asked as they slid out of the booth.  
  
Michiru placed a gentle hand on Usagi's arm while Rei was explaining  
about the joys of cold water and six foot wooden tubs. "You know,   
Usagi, you should listen to Rei if she feels strongly about   
something," she said softly. Michiru's face was serious as she added  
with a glance at the corner where she'd seen Kudoko.  
  
"Rei's intuition is usually right on target."  
  
***************************************  
  
There was only one light on at the Hikawa Shrine when Hino Rokojou   
got there. His anger had done nothing but grow as he'd driven across  
the city, fighting the traffic every inch of the way. His plan had   
been to wait for his father-in-law to arrive and make him surrender  
both the pictures and the negatives. That Souji had somehow managed   
to beat him here only fueled the rage building inside Hino. He'd   
worked too long and too hard to let his ambitions come to ruin   
because of the grudge held by one old man.   
  
He didn't bother to remove his shoes as he charged into the rooms   
  
that served as home for those living at the temple. The paper door  
to the prayer room was light, and he nearly ripped it in shoving it   
open. Souji was kneeling and turned with a start to see the much  
larger man framed in the doorway.  
  
"I've put up with you interfering in my life for too long, old man,"  
Rokojou's face was scarlet with rage. "Give me the pictures, now."  
  
"You are such a fool, boy" Souji replied, much calmer than Rokojou   
thought he'd be. "You seem intent on doing something that can only  
hurt everyone. Go back to your life in America before it's too   
late."  
  
Not bothering to close the paper door behind him, Rokojou advanced   
on the old man. "Oh no, you are not going to frighten me into silence  
any more."  
  
Closing his eyes, Souji sighed. This was a confrontation he'd been  
trying to avoid for fifteen years. He clapped his hands together   
three times to mutely pray for the help of his wife's spirit.   
  
"You're always so angry Rokojou, so defensive," Souji stood up, not  
intimidated by the younger and larger man. "Then again, I suppose   
you have cause to be defensive. After all, it mustn't be easy to   
live with the knowledge that you killed your wife."  
  
**************************************  
  
"You seem a little anxious tonight, Usagi." Kudoko tilted his head  
to one side, looking concerned. "Is everything all right?"  
  
"Well, no." Usagi rubbed her hands together nervously. She glanced  
at where Motoki sat quietly on the couch. "I've been thinking about   
my 'helping' you."  
  
(All right, Usagi!) Motoki cheered in his mind. (I knew you'd figure  
this out! Do your Sailor Moon thing and dust this guy!)  
  
Kudoko could feel Motoki chafing at his control. Usagi had come to  
the Crown Parlor earlier than he's expected and he hadn't had time to  
feed from his toy yet. He spared Motoki a glance, suddenly worried   
that the stubborn but clever boy would find a way around the   
compulsion he'd placed on him.   
  
"I've decided that I need to tell Mamo-chan about this before we go  
any further," Usagi said slowly, fighting the voice in her mind that   
said that she didn't want to tell Mamoru about this.   
  
Trying to appear casual, Akuma tilted his head in a show of sympathy.  
"You aren't having the nightmares again are you, Usagi? I thought I  
was helping to suppress them for you." The subtle threat that the   
dreams were being kept at bay only so long as Usagi let him feed on   
her hung in the air.  
  
It took all the strength he had left, but Motoki managed to find a   
way to get around the spell that Kudoko had on him. He couldn't come   
out and speak the truth, but he could and did find a way to thwart   
his much hated "Master".   
  
"People who love each don't keep secrets, Usagi," he said. "You  
should tell Mamoru about the dreams and anything else you feel you  
need to, right Akuma?" Motoki looked Kudoko Akuma and a smile of   
satisfaction broke across his face. The defiance and triumph was   
more than evident in the young man's expression. (Sucks to be you,   
doesn't it, fang-boy? Go ahead, try and force Usagi like you did me.   
That'll bring Mamoru running and he'll send you to hell via the rose  
express!)   
  
"Of course, Motoki. May I ask what brought this about?" Kudoko asked  
in soft voice. He lowered his head to look at the floor, trying to   
hide the anger filling him. This should not be happening! How Usagi  
had managed to come to this conclusion? The suggestion he'd planted   
in her mind the first night should have prevented this.   
  
"I've been talking to Rei-chan," Usagi started.   
  
"And she has some reservations about me?" Managing to get control of   
his frustration, Kudoko gave her a look that said he was not at all   
surprised by this turn of events. His voice was even and soothing.   
A long sigh turned into a regretful laugh. "She's a clever girl, Rei.  
No matter how hard I try to hide my curse, she still senses what I   
am at some level. She thinks I'm lying to you, using you for my own   
ends."  
  
"Well, something like that," Usagi blurted out. "I'll still do all I  
can to help lift this curse from you, Akuma, but I don't want to keep  
secrets from Mamo-chan."  
  
Motoki tensed, half expecting that Kudoko would attack Usagi, but was  
more than a little surprised when all he did was slowly nod his head   
in agreement. "I understand, Usagi," he said in a reasonable tone.   
"Would you like me to walk you home?"  
  
Usagi shook her head, a relived smile coming to her face. "No, thank  
you. I'll be fine. I'm so glad you're not upset about this."  
  
"Not all," Kudoko replied opening the door for her. "You tell Mamoru  
about this in the morning. The three of us can discuss tomorrow   
night if you'd like."  
  
Usagi was all ready moving down the hall and away. "That sounds like  
a good idea, Akuma. I'll see you tomorrow night then."  
  
Quietly closing the door, Kudoko leaned against it, his hands balling  
into fists at his side. "You…" Green eyes shifted to red, fangs  
sliding into place. He crossed the room in two strides and using both  
hands, grabbed Motoki by the collar, lifting him off the couch. "You   
tried to warn her," Kudoko snarled.   
  
It seemed, Motoki was able to note with satisfaction, that Kudoko was  
rattled by what had just happened. "And I did, too," it felt good for  
Motoki to be able to say the words, but even better to know that he'd   
saved Usagi from this monster. "Whatever game you're playing is now  
over. Usagi won't let you do what you want until she tells Mamoru   
about you. Once he knows what you are, you'll never get within  
a mile of her again. Oh, and if you plan on surviving to the weekend  
may I suggest that you start running right now?"  
  
With a bitter laugh Kudoko pulled Motoki close. "Oh no," he hissed  
"It's much too late for that. I've all ready been inside Usagi's mind.  
She'll hear my call and come to me. You, toy, are going to do me   
one, last service. Do you remember why I chose you? It's because   
you're close to both Tsukino Usagi and Chiba Mamoru. You carry so   
many memories of him in your mind – memories that I can use to my   
advantage."   
  
Red eyes bore into Motoki's and he stiffened in pain. He tried to   
close his eyes, to look away but couldn't. There was the sensation   
of something slithering into his mind, seeking, probing.   
  
The vampire gave a snarl, "And while it's true that Usagi may not   
trust Kudoko Akuma right now," his body shimmered and shifted shape.  
He smiled as Motoki gasped at the form Akuma now wore. "She'll fly   
into the arms of her beloved Chiba Mamoru, won't she?" the monster   
with Mamoru's face asked.   
  
A flick of the wrists sent Motoki flying. He crashed against the wall  
and slid to the floor, stunned. Still wearing Mamoru's form, Kudoko  
walked up to the young blond and knelt down beside him. An iron hand  
reached out and took Motoki by the jaw, forcing him to look into the  
red eyes.  
  
"Toy," the vampire said, his voice soft but full of menace, "You have  
out lived your usefulness to me. I was going to let you die while I   
drank you dry. It would have been a quick and pleasant end for you,   
but not now."  
  
Motoki couldn't answer, couldn't move or even protest as the vampire   
held in a mental grip of stone. All he could do was glare at the   
monster, his hate burning in his eyes. (Then kill me and get it over  
with. At least I won't have to listen to your insane and, quite   
frankly, boring plans anymore.)  
  
It was as if Kudoko could hear Motoki's thoughts. "You are going to  
die by inches, little man. What I do now is just the down payment on  
a long and painful death. By the time I'm finished with you, you   
will beg me to kill you."  
  
Kudoko raised his hand and closed it into a fist. Unable to move,   
Motoki could only watch as it raced towards him. He had a moment of   
terrible pain and the urge to cry out, then everything went black.  
  
***************************************  
  
  
  
It was a short ride back to the temple and Haruka had the top down on  
her car. The wind through her hair felt good and gave her a chance   
to calm down. The single light on in the prayer room caught Rei's  
attention as she came to the top of the long, stone stairs. Her heart  
began to beat faster as she got closer to the open paper door.   
Voices could heard – angry voices that she recognized as her father   
and grandfather.   
  
"Oh no, you're not going to frighten me into silence anymore," she   
heard her father say, as mad as she'd ever heard him.   
  
Creeping closer to the open door, Rei wasn't sure if she should  
interrupt the two men, or if her presence would only make things   
worse. Indecision made her pause. Horror rooted her to the spot  
  
  
where she stood when her grandfather spoke again.  
  
"You're always so angry Rokojou, so defensive," Souji said. "Then   
again, I suppose you have cause to be defensive. After all, it   
mustn't be easy to live with the knowledge that you killed your wife."  
  
Rei blinked owlishly form where she stood in the shadows. She wanted  
to believe that she'd misheard the words. It couldn't be true –   
could it?  
  
"Oh no," Rokojou snarled back, "I am not going to take the blame for  
this. Don't you think I would have stopped Miya if I knew what she   
was going to do? How was I to know that she'd do something as insane  
as driving in a hurricane?"  
  
Souji gave a bark of bitter laughter. "Did you ever consider the   
idea that you're the one made Miya frightened and desperate enough to   
risk getting in a car that night?"   
  
"I loved Miya!" Rokojou shouted back. There was pain in his voice, a  
longing to have something he never could again. "Everything I did   
was for her!"  
  
"Love?" Souji spat the word at Rokojou. "You don't beat people you   
love. What did you do to her that night, boy? Did it make you feel   
like a big man to keep hitting her until she begged you to stop?"  
  
"It wasn't like that! Miya was the hysterical type and that's your  
fault, old man. You filled her head with this nonsense about visions  
and seeing the future. I had to slap her every now and then to bring  
her back to reality."   
  
"But you didn't stop with just a slap that night did you?" Souji   
pushed at the larger man. "Did you?" he demanded. "Did you?!"  
  
Unable to stay in the shadows any longer, Rei stumbled into the door  
way. Her grandfather heard her first, his head snapping around to see  
Rei, the horror on her face breaking his heart. He took a step towards  
her.  
  
"Oh no, Rei…"  
  
"What did you do?" Rei asked in a dangerous whisper, her eyes riveted   
on her father. "What did you do, Daddy?"  
  
"I didn't mean to…" Rokojou stumbled over the words. The look in   
those violet eyes cutting him to the bone. "I was so angry that   
night. I was so angry and I just lost control. You now what it's  
like, princess. You get angry, too, I've seen it."  
  
"Shut up! You've done enough damage!" Souji roared. Couldn't the   
fool see what he was doing to Rei?  
  
"I didn't kill Miya!" There was desperation creeping into Rokojou's  
voice, a need to believe his own words. He started to walk towards  
Rei and she stepped back and away from her father. Her actions hurt   
him and he shouted, throwing up his hands. "I didn't kill her! Yes,  
I hurt her some, but she was the one who drove into the storm. I   
didn't kill her, princess. You're my daughter, damn it all. You   
have to believe me!"  
  
"No," Rei whispered. She reeled, her face gray and her eyes wide.  
"No, don't say that. I'm not like you!"  
  
"It'll be all right, little girl," the look on Rei's face frightened  
Souji. "Come with me. It'll be all right." He gently extended a  
hand in her direction.   
  
With a sob, she jerked away from him and looked at her father for an   
instant. "Don't say that," she cried out, shaking her head. "It's  
not true. I'm not like you!" Stumbling, Rei turned and ran off into   
the night. The sound of her anguish filled denial only fueled the   
need to run.   
  
"I'm not like you!"  
  
***************************************  
  
Next – Usagi's life is on the line and only Rei can save her. Can   
the Solider of Fire break the cycle of violence or will she be   
seduced by the Kudoko Akuma and what he promises her? It's justice  
versus vengeance in the final chapter, "The Third Choice". 


	5. Chapter Five

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own "Sailor Moon" or any of the   
attendant character to which valid copyright laws apply. This work  
of fiction is done without any expectations of reward other than the  
occasional fan letter!  
  
Authors' notes are at the end. I'd be grateful if you'd take a   
moment to read the.  
  
  
This story is rated "R" for violence and adult themes. Younger  
or more sensitive readers may want to hit the "back button" right   
about now.  
  
***************************************  
  
"Seduction" - by Meara  
  
Chapter Five – "The Third Choice"  
  
  
***************************************  
  
  
Rei ran until her lungs burned for air, forcing her to lessen her   
pace or collapse. She walked where her feet took her barely noticing  
what direction she was heading in. Each footfall sounded like a   
cannon shot in her head, bringing memories back that she'd tried so  
hard to bury forever.  
  
"You mustn't make Daddy angry, Rei," her mother's anxious voice told   
her. "You must never make Daddy angry." Only a small child, Rei had nevertheless understood the fear in her mother's hushed words.  
  
"He doesn't mean to hurt you. You see, there's a monster that lives  
inside your Daddy. When he gets too angry, the monster can come out   
and do bad things."  
  
Tears ran down Rei's face. She absently used a hand to wipe them  
away as she walked on in a futile attempt to out distance the truth.  
She could remember being huddled in the closet in her bedroom or   
under the bed, praying that monster who wore her father's face   
wouldn't find her. How could she have ever forgotten those awful   
nights when she tried so hard to hide from the sounds of her father   
beating her mother? A flash of memory took Rei like a ravening beast   
and she could see her father, his face so contorted with rage that he  
didn't look human. He shouted her name as he reached into the closet  
to pull her out.   
  
"No Daddy," she moaned, lost for a moment in the intensity of the  
memory. "I'll be a good girl. Don't hit me, Daddy, please don't  
hit me any more."  
  
Rei walked off the edge of the curb and the jarring bump of her   
misstep brought her back to the here and now. Kami, she was so tired,  
but Rei knew that she couldn't go home. Not now, not when her   
father might still be there. Along with the fear and grief was an  
anger so intense that it wanted to consume her. She was mad at her   
father for the lies he'd told her. She was mad at her grandfather   
for keeping something this important from her. Worst of all was the  
irrational anger at her mother for dying and leaving her with the   
monster who was her father.   
  
Rei wasn't sure how long she'd been walking. Her body ached and   
demanded that she stop moving, at least for a few minutes. Looking  
around, Rei noticed in a distracted way that she was in Juban Park.  
It was deserted at this hour of the night, so going to the closest   
bench, Rei sat down heavily. She buried her face in her hands, lost  
in misery.  
  
The recollections Rei had of her early childhood had been mercifully   
vague until recently. The years spent in the loving care of her   
grandfather had allowed her to forget the worst of them. The   
fractured memories of pain and fear had been carefully tucked away   
into the dark corners of her mind, only surfacing as a bad dream   
every now and then.   
  
The walls that kept those memories sealed away had cracked the night   
of the incident in the elevator. Tonight's events had shattered that  
protective barrier and she was at the mercy of a confusing jumble of  
words and feelings. A collage of disjointed images ran frenzied   
circles in Rei's mind. All she had to do was close her eyes and they  
overtook her. She could hear her mother crying softly, begging her   
father to stop. Worst of all, she could still hear her father's   
voice when he tried to explain away how he'd beaten her mother the   
night she died.  
  
~I was so angry and I just lost control. You know what it's like,   
princess. You get angry, too, I've seen it. ~  
  
There was a little voice in her mind that said she was just like   
her father. The memory of every time she'd ever lost her temper  
came flooding back to her. "No," Rei moaned. She looked at her   
hands and they shook under the careful scrutiny. How many times had   
she lashed out in frustration and anger? "Oh Kami, what have I done?  
What am I?"   
  
How many times had she slapped Usagi across the face, justifying her  
actions as the only way to stop her hysterical friend? Her father's  
voice haunted her.  
  
~I was so angry and I just lost control. You now what it's like,   
princess. You get angry, too, I've seen it. ~  
  
"No," Rei whispered, unaware that she was giving voice to her   
thoughts. "No, I'm not like you, Daddy. I don't want to be like   
you."  
  
"Rei?"  
  
The smooth, male voice made Rei turn, her eyes wide with a mixture of  
surprise and anguish. "M…Mamoru? What are you doing here?"  
  
"I'm on my way home from a lecture at the University tonight." The   
naked pain on her face almost made Mamoru flinch. The words were   
almost automatic, and he silently blasted himself for just how inane  
they sounded, but they fell from his lips before Mamoru could stop   
them. "Rei, are you all right?"   
  
She sniffled once, trying to put on a brave face. "Yes, I'm fine."  
  
"You don't look fine," Mamoru replied. "Remember when I made that   
offer to listen at the temple the other day? Well, it's still open   
if you want to talk to someone."  
  
Rei looked down at the ground. "I'm not sure I can, but I think I'd  
like to try."  
  
  
***************************************  
  
(Usagi…)  
  
Someone was calling her name and Usagi turned over in bed restlessly,  
pulling the light blanket with her. She roused slightly, dreams   
still running through her half awake mind. Murmuring Mamoru's name,   
Usagi tried to drift back down into that soft, wonderful world, but   
the voice followed her persistently.   
  
(Usagi…) came the call once more. (Usagi, come to me.)  
  
Mumbling for the voice to let her sleep, Usagi rolled over. The   
summons was soft, but one she couldn't ignore no matter how hard   
she tried. Like a sleepwalker Usagi threw back the covers bumping  
Luna as she did.   
  
"Usagi-chan, are you all right?" came the drowsy voice of her feline  
guardian.  
  
(Usagi, come to me. You must come to me.)   
  
"I gotta go…" Usagi mumbled, feeling the power of the call in her   
head yet again.   
  
Luna opened one eye and saw that Usagi was shuffling off in the   
direction that would take her to the bathroom. Since it appeared   
to be nothing more sinister than the call of nature, she went back   
to sleep.  
  
The voice in Usagi's mind whispered the call yet again. Pulled by   
the power of that summons, she moved out of her bedroom door then   
down the stairs. Nothing seemed quite real to Usagi and the thought  
that she was still asleep crossed her mind. That made sense, she   
decided upon reaching the front door.   
  
(Open the door) the inner voice prompted.   
  
She did so and saw Mamoru standing there smiling at her. "I want  
to be with you, Usagi. Let me come in," he said softly.  
  
"Okay," she answered in a whisper. A bemused smile spread across her  
face and she pushed the door open wide.   
  
"Mamoru" stepped inside, the door not quite closing behind him. He  
slipped his arms around Usagi and pulling her close, began to kiss   
her passionately. Oh yes, this was definitely one of those lovely   
dreams she had about Mamoru every now and then, Usagi decided. But   
if this was that dream then why wasn't Mamo-chan naked like he   
usually was? Oh well, he was so incredibly sexy, even fully clothed,   
Usagi mused happily. She enjoyed the feel of his warm arms holding   
her so tightly.   
  
Usagi sighed with pleasure as his lips moved to rain kisses on her   
face. From his midnight hair to those perfect red eyes, Mamoru was   
the most handsome man in the world to her. That thought made her   
pause. Usagi closed one eye, in an attempt to concentrate. Some  
thing wasn't right here – red eyes?  
  
"Mamo-chan, aren't your eyes supposed to blue?" she asked. That  
question seemed to clear some of the cobwebs from her mind and Usagi  
noticed for the first time that Mamoru appeared to be several inches   
shorter in this dream than he usually was. "And how come you're so   
short tonight?"  
  
"Sweet Usagi, none of that matters does it?" the monster with   
Mamoru's face said. He took Usagi by the chin and looked in her   
eyes. "You only need to listen to my voice," he stroked her cheek   
when she gasped as he went deeper into her mind, pulling up the   
memories of her nightmare. "You've been having bad dreams again,   
haven't you?"  
  
Her doubts forgotten, she leaned against his hand and whimpered like  
a child. "Make it stop, Mamo-chan. You were gone and it hurt so bad.  
I don't want to remember anymore."  
  
"Hush, my love. I'm here now and everything will be all right," he   
murmured, his lips moving to trace a path down onto her neck. A   
wicked smile showed razor sharp fangs. "I can make the pain and all  
the bad dreams go away, Usagi." The monster raised his head a little,  
letting is tongue flick out at the spot he'd chosen. "Just a kiss   
and they'll all go away forever."  
  
Usagi gave a soft sigh of surprise and relief when, as promised,   
the painful memories of the shattered soul bond and of watching her   
friends die were washed away by the intoxicating delight that flooded  
her. That was all that mattered, a voice whispered in Usagi's mind.   
This was what she needed so badly, to forget and to feel good again.   
She should just relax and enjoy it all.   
  
"Mamo-chan," she mumbled, allowing his arms to support her. "That   
feels so good…" Her gaze grew clouded and Usagi started to drown in   
the sweet, molten pleasure that flooded her mind and body.   
  
Kudoko was careful to never let the illusion slip while he held her.  
He drank deeper than he had dared to before, letting his hands roam   
Usagi's body with a skilled touch born of a century and half of   
practice. He toyed expertly with the Princess while he fed. His   
hands caressed and teased, stoking the power and passion he could   
taste in her blood. At last she gave a strangled gasp and collapsed  
against him. Pulling his head away, Kudoko Akuma smiled down at her.  
Her eyes glazed and vacant, Usagi lay quietly in his arms, open to   
whatever he desired of her.  
  
This was the moment he'd worked towards. Kudoko's free hand moved to  
undo the top of his shirt. A fingernail opened a shallow cut on his   
chest. The hand then slipped around to the back of Usagi's head and   
guided her to the wound. She stirred in his embrace, feebly trying   
to move her face away in mute protest.  
  
"Drink, Usagi. You have to do this so we'll never be apart again,"   
he murmured in a honeyed voice. The hand pushed against her, forcing   
her lips to the cut. "Drink and we'll be together forever," he coaxed.  
  
A smile came to his lips when he felt her do as he'd bid. Kudoko   
held Usagi tightly when her body gave the expected jerk, leaping   
against his arms as the enthralling magic in his tainted blood flowed   
into her. It was over in an instant and Usagi's eyes rolled up into   
the back of her as she slipped into unconsciousness.  
  
"Mamoru-san?! What are you doing?!"  
  
The vampire turned, Usagi still in his arms, at the sound of Luna's   
voice. Startled, the illusion shattered and fell away from him like   
broken glass. Kudoko snarled at the cat, fangs fully exposed.   
  
Luna arched her back and fur stood on end in an automatic reaction to   
danger. "You're not Mamoru," she growled. Feline reflexes took over  
and the black lunar cat launched herself at the monster, claws   
extended.   
  
Letting the insensible princess drop to the floor, Kudoko managed to  
catch Luna by the scruff of the neck. "Well, what have we here," he  
said with a dark laugh. "What are you supposed to be – some kind of   
guardian?" He held the squirming cat at arm's length. "Aren't you a  
little small for that kind of thing?"  
  
Enraged, Luna twisted and raked down the inside of his arm with her   
back claws. "Big enough to take care of the likes of you!"  
  
A snarl erupted as the sharp claws drew blood. Cursing loudly, the  
monster threw Luna away from him as hard as he could. She sailed   
through the air, vainly trying to take control of her arc of descent  
as she saw where she was heading. It all happened too fast and Luna  
slammed into the mirror by the front door. She fell to the floor,   
shards of glass raining down with her as she went.  
  
Kudoko turned away from Luna when she didn't move again. He knelt   
and let his hand slide down Usagi's throat to the hollow at the base  
of her neck. A smile came to his lips when he felt her pulse, slow   
and steady beneath his fingers. Gathering her up in his arms he   
started for the door. By taking his blood, the Moon Princess was now irrevocably bound to him. He had enough control of her to ensure that  
Usagi would not wake until he wished it and that left him free to   
pursue another important matter.   
  
Rei, he decided, had flatly refused him for the last time. He had   
hoped that she would come to him of her own free will, but admitted   
that it was now unlikely. It was Rei's fire and passion that   
attracted him, but it also made her amazingly stubborn. His   
acquisition of Usagi complete, Kudoko decided he could safely deposit  
the unconscious princess at his place and make a much anticipated   
side trip. A sensuous smiled tugged at Kudoko's lips. The night was  
young and the Hikawa Shrine was less than a mile from his apartment.   
  
***************************************  
  
Rei couldn't even look at Mamoru while she told him about her father.  
Her tale of abuse spilled out her like an unstoppable flood of grief   
and anger. A part of Rei was surprised that she was able to talk   
about the things she'd suppressed so deeply for over a decade.   
Still, her worst fears remained locked deeply inside her heart, and   
Rei found she couldn't voice them. There was the gnawing fear that   
she truly was just like her father, that it was only a matter of time  
before she became the monster he was.  
  
"This isn't your fault," Mamoru said softly in the long silence that  
followed Rei's tale. "There's nothing you could have done to stop   
your father, or to prevent your mother's death."  
  
Rei continued to stare at the ground. "Maybe…maybe if I'd been there   
that night instead of sleeping over at a friend's house, then my   
mother wouldn't have gone out into the storm."  
  
Mamoru placed a tentative hand on Rei's shoulders, unsure if she   
would tolerate any man's touch right now. "Or maybe she'd have taken  
you with her and you'd both have died. That's the problem with the   
'what if' game. You can't know that anything you did would have made  
any difference. Playing that game only hurts you more in the long   
run, Rei. I know - believe me I know."  
  
"He should have told me," Rei said, finally lifting her head to look   
at Mamoru. "My Grandfather had no right to keep this from me."  
  
"He was trying to protect you," Mamoru replied. "Perhaps he could   
have handled it better but any mistakes he made were out of love for  
you."  
  
He was right, Rei knew, but she was still so hurt by the revelations  
of this evening. "He should have told me," she repeated. "You don't  
keep secrets from the people you love!"  
  
The sharp tone made Mamoru smile. This was more like the Rei he   
knew. "And just when are planning to tell him that you're Sailor   
Mars?"  
  
Rei opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it again. She took a  
long, shuddering breath and was surprised by the small laugh that   
bubbled out of her. "Always being right is very annoying, Mamoru.   
How does Usagi put up with you?"  
  
"What can I say?" Mamoru shrugged his shoulders, "My Usako is a   
saint."  
  
"Kami, I'm so tired." The lighter moment faded quickly for Rei,   
replaced with bone deep exhaustion. "But I can't go home. Not when  
my father might still be there."  
  
"There's only one way to know, isn't there?" Mamoru reached into his  
pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He offered it to Rei, waiting  
patiently when she hesitated for a moment, before taking it.  
  
Her hand shook as she dialed the number. The phone rang only once   
before her grandfather picked it up. "Grandpa?" she choked out.  
  
"Little girl, where are you?" he sounded so anxious that tears sprang  
to Rei's eyes. "Are you all right? Oh Kami, I've been so worried."  
  
For once Rei didn't try to stop the tears that ran down her cheeks.   
She felt Mamoru move to gently rub her back in a gesture of support.  
"I'm okay. I'm with a friend. Grandpa, can I come home, now? Is it  
safe, is he gone? I don't want to see him," she wept in a small   
voice, feeling like a little girl once more.  
  
"He's gone, Rei," the old man's voice was rough with tears of his   
own. "And you never have to see him again if that's what you want.   
Please, little girl, please come home."  
  
"Okay," she replied, unconsciously rocking back and forth on the   
bench. "I'll come home. I love you, Grandpa…"  
  
"I love you too, Rei."  
  
By the time Rei had closed up the phone, Mamoru had his hand out to   
offer her tissue. She took it and wiped the wetness from her face.   
"Thank you."  
  
"Don't thank me, yet," Standing, Mamoru offered Rei his arm, "I still   
have to walk you home."  
  
Rei blew her nose loudly, "No, no, it's okay. I can get myself home."  
  
"What kind of hero would I be if I let you do that?" he asked in a  
mockingly insulted tone.  
  
Too tired to fight, Rei just smiled and took the proffered arm.   
"You're a prince of a guy, Mamoru."  
  
"Yeah," he replied with a sly smile, "but don't let it get around. I  
think that's one secret that needs to be kept a while longer."  
  
***************************************  
  
For a city as cosmopolitan as Tokyo, most sections of it had the   
small town habit of rolling up the sidewalks at about ten in the   
evening. Once the major shopping areas and the restaurants near them  
closed down, it grew very quiet very quickly. The thrumming of the   
engine of the red sports car echoed slightly off the surrounding   
buildings when it gilded into a parking spot.  
  
"Are you sure you left it here?" Haruka asked, slightly aggrieved as  
the two climbed out of the car.  
  
"I'm positive, "Michiru answered, moving towards the front door for   
the Crown Fruit Parlor. "I remember having my wallet to pay for the  
drinks just before we gave Rei a ride home. It's got to be here."  
  
Thrusting her hands into her pockets, Haruka walked with her lifemate.  
"I'm not sure that Motoki will still be here, though. This place   
closed almost an hour ago."  
  
Michiru used her elbow to tap the tall blonde in the ribs. "Excuse  
me, but I would have noticed I was missing my wallet a lot sooner if  
you hadn't insisted that we take the 'scenic' route home."  
  
That made Haruka smile. "True, true. But the view of Tokyo bay in   
the moonlight is worth the side trip, ne?" She reached for the front  
door, expecting to find it locked. She nearly tripped backwards when  
it came open.  
  
"It's open?" Haruka sounded surprised. She followed Michiru into the  
empty lobby of the parlor.   
  
"And the lights are all still on," the Senshi of Neptune's voice was  
low, barely above a whisper. A shiver ran down her spine as her   
sixth sense kicked in. "Something isn't right here."  
  
The two slipped quietly towards the back of the room. Haruka glanced  
at Michiru who nodded and they each moved to one side of the small,   
narrow hallway that led to the back offices. Peering carefully   
around the corner, Haruka saw that the light in the office was on and  
the door was ajar. Silent as cats they approached the door, once   
again splitting up so that each stood on one side of the entrance.   
Keeping most of her body out of doorway, Haruka snaked out her arm to  
slowly push the door open. When nothing happened, she caught   
Michiru's eye. The two moved with the perfect timing that only   
years of teamwork could bring. They burst into the small room in   
the same instant, but what they saw made both of them stop in their   
tracks.  
  
There, lying on the floor unconscious was a beaten and bleeding Motoki.  
  
***************************************  
  
Kudoko Akuma was frustrated. He'd attempted to enter the grounds of   
the Hikawa Shrine, but had been repelled by the power of light that   
pervaded the temple. So many of the "Shrines" in Tokyo were little   
more than theme-parks these days that he was unpleasantly surprised   
when his flesh had started to burn the moment he attempted to pass   
under the torii. He'd retreated to the shadows, pondering the best   
way to get Rei to come out to him when heard the approaching voices.   
  
"Are you sure you don't me to come up with you?" Mamoru asked. "Or I  
could call Usako or one of the girls to stay with you."  
  
Rei gave him what she hoped was a confident smile. "No, but thank   
you for the offer. This is something my Grandfather and I have to   
work out on our own."   
  
"All right," Mamoru replied with a sigh. He could sense the turmoil  
that lay just underneath the forced calm. "But don't be too   
surprised in the morning if you find that the Inner Senshi have   
invaded this place. I'm not sure I'll ever understand everything   
about women, but I do know that you five have a special bond between   
you."  
  
Impulsively, Rei leaned forward and kissed a surprised Mamoru on the  
cheek. "You're right Mamoru, you don't know everything about women,"  
she said giving him a gentle push to be on his way. "But I do know   
that my friends will be there when I need them."  
  
Rei watched him go, waving back when he stopped to look at her one   
last time before rounding the corner. She then turned and faced the   
ancient, stone steps that led to her home. With a deep, shuddering   
breath, she prepared to mount them and try to put her life back   
together. Rei had no more than shifted her weight to move when a   
restraining hand was suddenly on her arm. She whirled, surprise   
turning to outrage when she saw who it was.  
  
"Kudoko Akuma," Rei hissed, anger suddenly flaring up in her. "I   
don't this need this right now. Let me go."  
  
His eyes shifted from green to red, fangs nudging out from his lips  
when he gave her a smile. "On the contrary, beautiful Rei, I am just  
what you need."  
  
***************************************  
  
Mamoru had thought briefly about heading back to see Usagi after   
dropping off Rei, but one look at his watch changed his mind. He had  
been heading to her when he'd come across Rei in the park. At this   
hour Usagi would probably be asleep. Mamoru knew that trying to wake  
Usagi up under the best circumstances was not an easy task. His   
night had been difficult enough as it was and he decided to head for   
home.   
  
When he rounded the corner of the street that the Crown Fruit Parlor   
was on, he noticed that all the lights were still burning in the   
restaurant. Having the place fully illuminated was, in itself, was   
odd enough to grab his attention. The cost of electricity was such   
that Motoki's father was fairly strict about light use after the   
business had closed. A glance at his watch told Mamoru that the   
Crown had closed about an hour ago. The nagging feeling that   
something was wrong ratcheted up notch when he saw the bright red   
Ferrari that belonged to Haruka parked out in front, the headlights  
still on.   
  
"Motoki?" Mamoru called, pushing open the front door that should have  
been locked. "Motoki are you here?"  
  
"Back here!" came Michiru's voice from the office in the back of the  
restaurant.   
  
Mamoru was prepared for trouble, but the sight of Motoki laying on  
the floor, beaten and bleeding shocked him. "What happened?" he   
whispered, kneeling down to assist in the first aid Michiru was   
giving Motoki.   
  
"We don't know," Michiru replied. Behind her Haruka was on the phone  
calling for an ambulance. "I left my wallet here earlier this   
evening and when we came back to get it, we found Motoki like this."  
  
"Heads up," came Haruka's voice. She'd found a first aid kit and,   
still on the telephone, tossed it to Mamoru.  
  
He caught the small box and quickly opened it. Outside of Band-aids,   
gauze, a burn cream and an ancient pair of tweezers, there wasn't   
much of use in the kit. Opening the gauze, Mamoru folded it over   
several times before placing it against a still bleeding wound on the  
scalp. At his touch Motoki gave a low moan and his eyes cracked open.  
  
"Easy, Motoki. Help is on the way," Mamoru applied gentle pressure   
to stop the flow of blood from the cut on his forehead.   
  
(How long have I been out?) Motoki wondered, glancing up at the clock   
on the wall. (Oh God – Usagi! I have to warn them that he's after   
Usagi!) He tried to speak but the compulsion Kudoko had placed on   
him was still in force. The only sound he could get out was a   
garbled whimper. Since the moment he'd fallen under the spell of the  
vampire, Motoki had been looking for a way to circumvent it. Unable   
to speak or write the truth, Motoki had taken the only avenue left to  
him. Desperate, he used it now.  
  
"Try and relax," Mamoru said in a soothing voice. "We'll get you to  
the hospital as soon as we can."  
  
It was hard, the beating had left him sore and battered, but Motoki   
was able to make his hands work. He reached out and grabbed Mamoru   
as hard as he could. His clumsy fingers began to spell out his   
message.  
  
"Just lie still, Motoki," Mamoru said, missing the significance of  
the moving fingers.  
  
(I know you took the damned course in American Sign Language last   
year,) Motoki raged in his mind. (You can't have forgotten all of   
it. I've been studying the damned book just so I could learn enough  
to warn you, now look at my hands!) A grimace of pain and frustration  
spread across Motoki's face and he started his message again.  
  
Michiru was the one who caught the meaning of the moving fingers,   
putting a hand on Mamoru's shoulder. "Mamoru, his hands… Motoki are  
you using American sign?"  
  
(Yes!) Motoki cheered. With great care he slowly spelled out the  
words one more time. U…S…A…G…I…  
  
"You know American Sign Language?" Mamoru asked in distracted   
fashion.  
  
"Doesn't everyone?" Michiru replied dryly as she watched Motoki's   
dancing hands. "Usagi? He's spelling out Usagi's name. Wait,   
there's more."   
  
Sign Language was a required course for all Med students. It seemed  
an odd thing to be learning American Sign Language in Japan, but it  
turned out that it was the standard used by medical personnel the   
world over. To be honest it was one of those annoying required  
courses that he'd taken and forgotten about as soon as it was over.   
Mamoru's limited knowledge was slowly coming back to him, and he   
followed Motoki's hands as the blond man spelled out the last of his  
message.  
  
"He's after Usagi." Mamoru sounded confused. He searched for the   
part of him that was connected to Usagi. The bond was quiet with no  
hint of trouble. "Who's after Usagi? I don't understand."  
  
Haruka was beside them now and she watched Michiru go pale as she   
read what the message the dancing hands gave her. "Kudoko Akuma?"   
she said suddenly remembering Rei's comments about him.   
  
Haruka stood in back of Michiru. "Wait a minute, isn't that the guy  
who's been hitting on Rei? What would he want with Usagi?"  
  
Michiru glanced at Mamoru as he too finally understood the word   
Motoki was signing. With the last of his strength the blond man   
tried to pull at the collar of his shirt. Michiru reached out and  
did it for him. What Mamoru saw made his heart almost stop with fear.  
  
There, at the base of Motoki's neck were two, raw puncture wounds.  
  
"Oh no, Rei was more right about him than she knew," Michiru said in   
a horror stricken whisper, turning to look at a stunned Haruka.   
Mamoru was all ready on his feet and running for the door. "Kudoko   
Akuma is a vampire – and he's after Usagi."   
  
  
***************************************  
  
Rei was a small child again, hiding in the darkness. She knew with   
a cold fear that made her stomach knot that her father was out there,  
looking for her. Whimpering, she curled into a tight ball, praying  
that this time he wouldn't find her. But he did find, of course, he  
always found her. He was there, standing in the place where the   
shadows met the light. Even though his back was to her, Rei knew at  
once who he was.  
  
"Daddy?" Fright and anger vied for control. "Go away! I don't  
want to see you!"  
  
He turned, seemingly not surprised to see her and in his arms was   
Usagi. The smooth, charming smile she knew so well was on his face   
and he looked straight at her. "You can't get rid of me so easily,"  
her father said. "After all I'm part of you aren't I? I'm every-  
thing you could be. I'm everything you will be."  
  
Taking Usagi by the chin the Rokojou pushed her head to one side,   
exposing her slender throat. He looked at his daughter, black eyes   
becoming red and fangs nudging out from between his lips. His voice  
was deep and smooth, even in tone as if he was stating the obvious.   
  
"There are only two kinds of creatures in this world, Princess," he  
repeated. "The strong and the weak; those who use people and those   
who are used. Which one are you?"  
  
"No!" Rei called out in a desperate voice. "No, Daddy, please don't  
hurt her! I'll be a good girl, really I will be!"   
  
Laughing at her, Hino Rokojou tilted his head back. He plunged down  
and started to feed. Usagi cried out in anguish, begging him to   
stop. Hino ignored the pleas for mercy and continued to feast on the   
lifeblood of the woman in his arms, utterly oblivious to anything but  
his own needs. Usagi began to blur and shift into a new shape. Rei   
watched with horror as the woman in her father's arm was no longer   
her best friend, but her mother.   
  
"Stop it!" Rei screamed, tears running down her face, "You're   
hurting her! You're hurting her!"   
  
A terrible fear welled up inside Rei along with a sense of déjà-vu.  
She knew what was going to happen. In another second her mother was  
going to die at the hands of her father. With a scream Rei threw   
herself at her father, tearing him away from her mother. She seethed  
with a fear and rage born of a desperate longing to stop the pain   
that had been with her since her earliest memories. The inferno of   
anger inside of Rei erupted, burning hotter than she'd ever known it  
to. Grabbing him by the arm she wanted only one thing; to put an end  
to his ability to hurt her once and for all.  
  
"No more hurting people," she screamed at her father. "No more   
hurting me!" Flames suddenly wreathed her hands, running into   
the man she held before she could even try to stop them.   
  
"FIRE SOUL!"  
  
The inferno engulfed Hino Rokojou, but instead of screaming in pain,  
he laughed at Rei once more. His body burning to ashes, Hino smiled   
at his daughter. His hands grabbed her face and pulled it close   
until he looked deeply into her eyes.   
  
"I proud of you, Princess," whispered to her in the instant before he  
was completely consumed. "Like father, like daughter."  
  
She jerked away, horrified both by what she had done and by her   
father's words. She looked at her hands. They still burned with the  
same fire that raged in her soul. "My…my father's daughter? No, I  
don't want to be you," she shrieked at the ash that swirled away into  
the darkness. "I don't want to be you!"  
  
"Can you choose from only one of the two paths your father sets for   
you?" came her grandfather's voice. Rei turned and saw Okibi Souji.   
The sacred fire that gave the Hikawa Shrine its name burned in back   
of him. "Or will you chose a third? Remember who you are and find  
your own destiny."  
  
Tears in her eyes, Rei ran to the old man. He wrapped his arms   
around her and she let him comfort her. Rei felt so safe, so loved  
and protected that it washed her pain away.   
  
Rei slowly woke in the dimly lit room, her grandfather's words still   
echoing in her mind. Had it all been a dream, Rei wondered? Had the confrontation with her father been nothing more than a nightmare?   
There was an odd ache at the base of her throat and she put a hand to  
it automatically. Although her fingers were still thick and clumsy   
with sleep, Rei felt the two welts there. When she brought her hand   
in front of her face, she could see the traces of dried blood on the  
fingertips.  
  
Oh no," she mumbled, not wanting to believe what she saw. The memory  
of what Kudoko had done to her hit Rei like a blow. She could   
remember the wild, sensual ride his kiss had brought and, worst of   
all, her reaction to it. "Oh no…"   
  
"You're awake," came a voice from the darkness around her. "This is   
surprise. I was sure you'd be out for at least a few more hours."  
  
Kudoko Akuma walked out of the shadows. He came to crouch down by   
the couch she lay on. "I drank more deeply from you than I'd   
intended to, but once I started it was so hard to stop." He smiled,  
letting a hand reach out to tenderly stroke her cheek. "You are   
exquisite, my beautiful Rei-chan, everything I'd hoped for and more   
than worth the wait to have you."  
  
"Drop dead, you jerk," Rei mumbled, pushing his hand away from her.  
  
"Been there, done that," Kudoko laughed delightedly. "Death is only  
the beginning for people like us."  
  
The fog in her head was persistent, making it hard to think. "I'm  
nothing like you."  
  
"We have much more in common than you think," Kudoko smiled back.   
"Tell me, my Rei-chan, who's the man in your life who abuses you? Is  
it your father or your grandfather? Does he hit you until you beg   
him to stop, or rape you and tell you that you wanted it?" He paused  
only for an instant at the look of shock on her face. "I know all   
about the pain you live with because I've lived it too. Do you know  
how I got to be what I am now?"  
  
"Bad karma?"   
  
If the barb annoyed him, Kudoko didn't show it. "His real name was  
lost over the centuries of his life after death. He became known to  
his slaves as 'The Master'. I was one of those slaves, taken by him  
the day before I turned fourteen. For seven long years he used me  
as a plaything and a sexual toy. I was twisted into what pleased  
him at the moment; pleasure or pain, love or torture. He owned me,   
body and soul."  
  
There was stirring of pity in Rei for the creature before her. "He   
used you like an animal."   
  
Yes," Kudoko's eyes grew distant for a moment and he seemed to be  
speaking less to Rei than to himself. "To make sure he could have me  
forever, he changed me and made me into what I now am. At first I   
wished that I had truly died, but that changed just as I did over the  
years. You and I, Rei-chan, we've learned the hard lesson that love  
and justice are only illusions. The only way to keep from being hurt  
is by being strong enough to keep them all afraid of you."   
  
The moment of reverie ended and he smiled at Rei once more. "I'm   
going to give you the greatest of all gifts - revenge. As my   
consort you'll have more power then you could have ever imagined.   
Your vengeance can be as fast or slow as you want it to be. He'll  
beg, my beautiful Rei, I can promise you that. The man who abused   
you will beg for mercy."  
  
"I'm not like my father," desperation crept into Rei's voice. She   
could suddenly hear her mother's voice begging her father to stop   
hitting her. "I don't want to be him!" Her head spun and she   
pressed her eyes closed. A part of Rei wanted so badly to hurt her  
father the way he'd hurt her, but most of her knew that it was wrong.  
"No, if you do that then you only become as bad as they are. It has  
to end. The circle of pain has to be broken."  
  
There was disappointment in Kudoko's voice as he rose and walked away  
into the shadows. "You still cling to the values of the weak. This   
is why I'd hoped you sleep through what's coming tonight." He   
glanced back over his shoulder at her and saw Rei trying to rise.   
"Don't try to get up, Rei-chan, you'll find you won't be able to."  
  
A small lamp on an antique roll top desk was clicked on. Rei fell   
back onto the couch, the dizziness worsening the more she moved. The   
room was still spinning, but Rei was able to make out a figure in   
the lamp's paltry glow.   
  
Curled up in a large, overstuffed chair was Usagi. Glazed eyes   
staring off into space, Usagi was smiling at something only she could   
see. Even from the couch Rei could see the ugly puncture wounds at   
the base of her neck.   
  
"Usagi!" Rei attempted to sit up until the dizziness forced her   
back down once more. Any attempt to rise was met with a force that  
slammed her back onto the sofa. "What have you done to her – to me?"  
  
"Usagi is quite happy in the illusion I've crafted for her, aren't   
you pet?" One hand reached out to pat the princess on the head as   
one might a favored animal. "In my studies of Sailor Moon, I'd   
noticed that Tuxedo Kamen tends to show up whenever she feels that   
she's in trouble. So, the best way to prevent any interference from  
Chiba Mamoru or the Senshi is to keep Usagi quiet and content as long  
as possible."  
  
Picking up a porcelain bowl and a matching vial, he glanced at the   
woman on the sofa. "And as you for you, beautiful Rei, until you   
and I are more of the same mind, I thought it best to place a small  
compulsion on you. You won't be able to get off that couch until I  
allow it."  
  
Stubbornly, Rei kept trying to sit up. "I don't know what you have   
planned," her violet eyes narrowed as she snarled at him. "But I  
will not let you hurt Usagi."  
  
"So stubborn…" With a resigned sigh the bowl was placed on the floor.  
He removed the stopper from the vial and carefully poured the viscous  
liquid into the bowl. "Some lessons have to be learned the hard way.  
Very well then, watch."   
  
Kudoko went to the chair that Usagi was curled up on. He bent over,   
cupping her chin with one hand and tilting her head up. "Usagi, look   
at me pet," he murmured. She gasped slightly as he sifted through   
her memories, finding one he could use. The form of Kudoko Akuma   
shimmered, shifting and rearranging itself into one that Rei   
immediately recognized.  
  
"No…" Rei whispered.  
  
"Chiba Mamoru" turned to smile at the young woman on the couch. The  
perfection of the illusion was spoiled by the burning, red eyes.   
"Usagi would never refuse to anything her 'Mamo-chan' told her to,   
now would she?"  
  
The monster with Mamoru's face closed his eyes and opened his arms.   
The bowl shuddered and a circle of blue liquid rose from it to reach   
the ceiling. It flared to life abruptly, the incandescent fire   
casting eerie shadows through out the room. Within the arcane flames  
a shadowy mass formed, like a hellish fog. Her sixth sense screaming  
at her, Rei stared at it and could see a dim shape deep in the mists.   
  
  
  
Pulling the dazed and unresisting Usagi to her feet, Kudoko turned   
her to face the writhing, blue wall. "I have brought you the Moon   
Princess, the one who holds the power of the Ginzuishou."  
  
The thing behind the barrier moved closer,   
  
Rei jumped when she heard the creature's voice echo in her mind. Her  
skin was crawling with the sense of evil that came from the creature.  
"What are you doing?"  
  
Kudoko smiled at her. "Exactly what I said, I was going to do. I'm  
taking the necessary steps to ensure that I will be the most powerful  
being on this planet."   
  
***************************************  
  
"He looked like Mamoru," Luna moaned. "But I knew it couldn't be   
Mamoru-san when I saw what he was doing. I shouted and it must have  
startled him because he shifted back into his true form."   
  
She lay in the healing embrace of Hotaru. The others had been silent  
as she told them how she'd discovered Usagi in the arms of the   
vampire. By the time Tuxedo Kamen and the others had gotten to the   
Tsukino home both Usagi and the creature that stole her were gone.   
There was only the broken glass and a blood stained floor to prove   
that the attack had happened.  
  
"I can't believe that Kudoko Akuma is a vampire." Venus was still in  
shock. The man she'd been so hot for all summer was one of the  
cursed undead. Her luck with the male of the species (any species   
it seemed, Minako mused grimly) was running true to form. "Well,   
that explains why Rei-chan dislikes him so much. And why he only   
worked nights."  
  
"The news gets better," Makoto hung up the telephone in the living   
room. "Rei's grandfather says she never made it home. Kudoko Akuma   
has spent months chasing her. I can't believe that Rei's sudden   
disappearance is just a coincidence."."  
  
Pluto stood very still beside Saturn, listening to the tale unfold.  
She looked at Tuxedo Kamen. "You're still not getting any sense that   
Usagi is in danger are you?" she asked. It was less a question than   
a statement. "This kind of seduction is why vampires have managed to  
stay hidden from the world for so long. They can make their target   
feel very good - so good that they never suspect that any real harm  
is coming to them until it's too late."  
  
Uranus didn't like where this was going. "What do you mean by 'too  
late'?"  
  
"I mean," Pluto replied in a low voice that commanded attention,   
"That if this Kudoko Akuma is able to make Usagi or Rei take his   
blood they'll be bound to him in a way that only death can end."  
  
The blue eyes behind the white mask were hard with both fear and an  
a quiet rage. "Then we'll just have to make sure that to we put an  
permanent end to this monster," Mamoru said. He tried once again and  
felt for the bond between he and Usagi, but it was quiet within him.   
A twist of his wrist called a single rose. "And I've got his one way  
ticket to hell right here."  
  
***************************************  
  
Kudoko moved in back of the dazed princess, an arm around her waist   
to steady her. "Usagi, I want you to do something for me," he   
whispered to her.   
  
The crystal blue eyes were open, but the look in them was distant, as  
if Usagi was still dreaming. She leaned against the man in back of   
her. "You want me to do something, Mamo-chan?"  
  
"Yes," Kudoko held Usagi when she swayed for a moment. "I need you   
to use the Ginzuishou. Call on the crystal, Usagi."  
  
"No!" Rei called out from the couch. She tried to rise but an   
invisible hand forced her back down. "Usagi, that's not Mamoru,   
don't listen to him!"  
  
Usagi blinked at the sound of Rei's voice, confused. "Rei…Rei-chan?"  
  
Kudoko glanced at Rei with annoyance, "Stop that, Rei. Lie down and  
be quiet. You're only going to hurt yourself if you keep trying to   
get up." He moved in front of Usagi, once again catching her gaze.   
"My voice is the only one you hear, Usagi; the only one that matters.  
You have to use the Ginzuishou, now."  
  
Smiling drunkenly, Usagi nodded. Slowly she brought her hand up in   
front of her locket. "I have to use the Ginzuishou."   
  
Keeping an arm around Usagi's waist, Kudoko once more stepped in back  
of her. "That's right, Usagi. You have to use the Ginzuishou to   
break the Seal."  
  
Rei watched with growing horror as the locket popped open to reveal   
the Ginzuishou. The stone began to glow, the silver light dancing   
around the cupped hands. Rei struggled vainly against the magic that  
held her. Frightened, frustrated and confused she tried to think of   
a way out, but her mind seemed to be wrapped in a persistent fog. It  
was part of the magic that was keeping her from getting up, she  
realized. Almost automatically her hands started to carve out the   
Kyuuji Goshin ni In. The first lesson her grandfather had taught   
her, it was an exercise in focus, a way to try and connect with the  
divine and by now Rei could do it as easily as some people breathed.  
With each sign she could feel the enchantments that held her weaken.  
  
"Rin, Hyou, Tou…" she whispered, "…Sha, Kai, Chin, Retsu, Zai, Zen!"   
  
It took all the discipline her Grandfather had taught her, but Rei  
concentrated on the prayer. She fought against the physical and   
emotional exhaustion that held her down as effectively as the magic  
Kudoko had set on her. The words her grandfather had spoken to her   
in the dream came back to Rei.  
  
Remember who you are and find your own destiny."  
  
Like the light of the Sacred Fire burning through the darkness, Rei   
had a moment of revelation that made it all so clear to her. She had   
been so worried about being her father's daughter that she'd   
overlooked the obvious. I may be my father's daughter, she thought,  
But I'm also the daughter of Miya and the granddaughter of Souji and  
Yuriko. My family has been fighting the darkness for over three   
centuries and I will not let it beat me!  
  
"Yes," Kudoko smiled when the light between Usagi's hands flared   
brighter, "That's it. Break the Seal, Usagi. Use the Ginzuishou and  
break the Seal."  
  
With a psychic snap she could feel, Rei shattered the compulsion that  
held her down. A twist of the wrist brought her henshin wand to her   
hand. "Mars crystal power – make up!" she screamed, tumbling off the   
couch. It was the Soldier of Fire who rolled to her feet to face   
Kudoko Akuma.  
  
"You actually managed to break the compulsion. I'm impressed, but   
I'm getting annoyed, too," Kudoko gave a dark laugh. He turned his   
head to look at her, never taking his arm from Usagi's waist. "I   
waited too long for this moment to let anyone, even you, stop me.   
Don't make me have to kill you, Rei."  
  
"It doesn't have to be like this," Rei called back. "Usagi can cure  
you. You can be human again."  
  
An insane light came to the red eyes. "Human? Why should I want to  
be an insignificant human again?! Usagi is human and look at her.   
She's deaf to anything but my voice, blinded and totally lost inside   
the illusion I created. For all the power this little girl controls,   
she was easy to seduce. All I had to do was play on her sympathies   
and Usagi fell right into my hands."  
  
Rei was almost shaking with both exhaustion and a building anger.   
"You lied to Usagi to gain her trust. You lied to everyone you met,  
twisted and used people like they're toys for your amusement."  
  
"Don't play the pious Miko with me," Kudoko snarled. "I've seen the  
darkness in you. You've got quite the temper my Rei-chan, and you   
use it so wonderfully. Under my guidance, you'll learn to unleash   
that darkness and it will make you stronger than you could have ever  
imagined. You'll be able to make the man who abused you pay,   
Rei-chan. The moment you see that fear in his eyes, the moment he   
knows he's going to hell and you're the one sending him there, you'll  
be free of him forever!"  
  
It all slid into place for Rei. Just like someone who had been   
abused as a child, Kudoko had, in turn, become an abuser himself.   
"Listen to yourself. You said you hated what the Master did to you,  
but you're using and manipulating people just like he did. You've   
become the very monster you say you hate!"  
  
the demon from behind the   
Seal roared.   
  
"He's right, Rei. Don't force me to hurt you," Kudoko hissed. He   
turned his attention back to Usagi, forcing his will on her. She  
reeled under the psychic assault and would have fallen if not for his  
arm around her waist. "Use the Ginzuishou! The Seal has to be broken!  
Use the crystal now!"  
  
Unable to refuse either the voice in her mind, or the face of her   
beloved, Usagi clumsily opened her link with the Ginzuishou. The   
power between Usagi's hands flared brighter once then twice.   
  
"Usagi, no!" Out of time and options, Rei tapped the energy the rage  
inside her heart gave her. She channeled it into her hands and the   
sigil of the Solider of Fire appeared. She called out the words and   
drew back the burning bow, taking direct aim at Kudoko Akuma. He was  
too close to Usagi to risk releasing the arrow and Rei waited for her  
moment to strike.   
  
"I am Mars," she shouted, trying to bait him into stepping away from   
Usagi, "the Soldier of Fire. Let Usagi go or in the name of love and  
justice I shall punish you!"  
  
"Love and justice?" He shouted at her, "Love and justice are   
illusions, a fantasy clung to by the weak. The powerful use the   
powerless. That's the way it's always been and always will be. Accept  
the truth you all ready know in your heart, Rei! There are masters   
and slaves, if you're not one, then you're the other. Power is all   
that matter because only power can keep you from being used!" Kudoko  
winced slightly as the Usagi called on the Ginzuishou. The purity of  
the power being summoned hurt him and he finally released his hold on  
her. He took a single, small step away from Usagi.   
  
"You're more wrong than you can know. But as long as you want to try  
and justify your actions with clichés, I've got another one you might  
know." She drew back hard on her flaming bow. "If you play with   
fire you're bound to get burned!"  
  
The arrow was loosed and flew for its target. Kudoko was struck in   
the shoulder, just above the heart. He shouted in pain, stumbling   
further away from Usagi. With the pain came loss of control. The  
form of Chiba Mamoru shattered and fell away from him like shards of  
broken glass. Usagi dropped her hands, the light from the Ginzuishou  
fading away. No longer held by his will, she took a wavering side   
step and like a puppet whose strings had been cut collapsed to sit   
silently on the floor.  
  
A hand clawed at the burning arrow and Kudoko used his own magic to   
extinguish it. "This kind of wound, even one backed by your power,   
isn't enough to stop me from doing what I plan, Rei," he snarled, the  
arm hanging useless at his side.   
  
Another arrow was ready to be loosed. "I know," she replied, taking  
aim. "But this will!"  
  
In a heartbeat the arrow struck the porcelain bowl on the floor,   
breaking it. The Seal wavered and started to fall back in on itself.  
The shadowy figure behind the blue barrier howled in outrage.  
  
the voice hissed, seething with anger and hatred.   
  
Kudoko was more wounded by Rei's attack than he let on, but he faced   
the disintegrating Seal confidently. He still controlled the power of   
the Ginzuishou through Usagi and was quite sure that he'd have Rei,   
too, before the sun rose again. "The last time I looked you're still  
trapped behind that Seal." Kudoko gave a derisive snort. "You can't  
touch me. Make me 'pay'? I think not."  
  
From out of the collapsing barrier came a thin tendril of darkness.   
Before Kudoko Akuma could move it wrapped tightly around his waist.   
The handsome monster had only time to stare, dumbfounded at it,   
before he was lifted from his feet.  
  
The demon   
laughed as if Kudoko was a stupid child.   
  
"No!" Kudoko shrieked, reaching in Rei's direction. "Help me!"   
  
Before Rei could take a single step, Kudoko Akuma was pulled inside  
the rapidly disintegrating Seal. He was swallowed up by the darkness  
on the other side, his last screams for help lingering in the air.   
Just before the last of the barrier faded away Rei heard the demon's  
voice once more.  
  
  
  
When Tuxedo Kamen and the Senshi arrived a few minutes later they   
found Sailor Mars sitting in the middle of the floor holding a dazed  
and weeping Usagi. Neither of them looked up, seemingly oblivious to   
the world around them. Mamoru raced to take Usagi into his arms,   
pulling her close and whispering that she was safe now.  
  
Mars jumped slightly when Jupiter put a gentle hand on her should, as  
if only now noticing that the Senshi had arrived. Her duty to her   
friend and princess done, the Solider of Fire disappeared to become   
Hino Rei once more. She looked up with haunted eyes to see Makoto on  
one side of her and Minako on the other.  
  
"Rei-chan, are you all right," Makoto asked softly.  
  
No, I'm not," Rei said and burst into tears.  
  
  
***************************************  
  
In stark contrast to one another they stood at opposite ends of the   
room. Rei was dressed in the traditional robes of Shinto Miko, Hino  
Rokojou in a suit from Sax's Fifth Avenue. An uneasy silence hung in  
the air for a long moment.  
  
"I didn't kill your mother," Rokojou finally said. "You have to   
believe me, I loved her. You're all I have left of her. I can't lose   
you too, Princess."  
  
In his own way, Rei did believe that her father had loved her mother.   
She wondered if his unchanging protests of innocence in her mother's   
death were for her benefit or his. "Rei, Daddy. My name is Rei.   
You never call me that," she observed, puzzled by yet one more aspect   
of the man.   
  
"I didn't kill your mother," he repeated one more time. "She died in   
a terrible accident. I didn't cause her death."  
  
"Yes you did and until you can see that, I don't want anything to do   
with you." Her grandfather was behind her and she'd heard him sigh   
when her father spoke. Whether it was in resignation or disgust she   
didn't know.   
  
An angry flush crept up Hino's face and Rei half expected him to lash  
out, but all he did turn away from her and head for the door. "This  
isn't over between us," he mumbled while he slipped on his shoes.   
  
"Until you change, yes it is. Good-bye, Daddy."  
  
A hand was on the paper door. Just before he shut it, Hino Rokojou   
looked back over his shoulder at his daughter. A mixture of emotions   
that Rei couldn't read flickered across his face. Across a void as   
deep as the ocean, father and daughter regarded one another.   
  
"You have your mother's eyes," Rokojou paused, then added, "…Rei."  
  
She went to the door and watched him go, dry eyed. Perhaps she'd  
cried all the tears for her father that she had in her, Rei mused   
hopefully. Somehow she doubted it. "Why can't I hate him for what   
he's done? Why do I still want him to love me?"  
  
"Because you have not only your mother's eyes, but her good heart   
as well," Souji answered.   
  
"Or perhaps it's just that I'm as stubborn as my Grandfather," Rei  
replied, her hand on the door frame.   
  
Souji came to stand beside her and gave an amused snort, "Perhaps."  
  
Hino Rokojou walked across the stone courtyard and moved towards the  
steps that led to the street. He was watched each step of the way by   
the small group of people that clustered in the shade of the largest of  
the old trees. Mamoru and Usagi stood next to each other, her hand   
resting in his. He'd been telling her that Motoki would be all right,  
but as Rokojou approached they both fell silent. As one they looked   
at Hino and then turned their backs on him. Makoto glared at Rokojou,  
seething and wanting an excuse to hurt him. Michiru sat quietly with   
her Lifemate and Setsuna. As Hino approaches Haruka made a show of   
putting her arm around Michiru, just to annoy him. Minako was the   
only one not glaring at Rokojou. She looked at Rei, turning her head  
in a questioning manner.   
  
Without a backwards glance, Rei's father walked out of her life. The   
loss hurt more than she'd thought it would. She reminded herself that  
the sorrow should be tempered by the fact that she wasn't alone. She   
had her Grandfather and friends who loved her unconditionally. Rei   
let an arm slip around Souji's shoulders and give him a hug.  
  
"Are you all right, Little Girl?" he asked gently.  
  
"No, I'm not," she answered candidly. Rei's glance was drawn to   
where her friends waited patiently for her. "But in time I think I  
will be, Grandpa." Family, she'd come to learn, was less a matter of  
flesh and blood than of the heart.   
  
"I think I will be."  
  
***************************************  
  
Author's notes: I'd like to take a moment to thank a number of   
people who have been with me during this story. First, to Masked   
Maiden, my eternal gratitude for the gifts of her time and friendship.  
Donnar-I, thank you for stepping up and saying that I should continue,  
even when I wanted to walk away from this story. Kendall, thanks for   
being another set of eyes for me. And to Don, who always writes to   
me with a wonderful C&C, thank you. Your insights, both positive   
and negative, have been extremely helpful.  
  
I'd also be negligent if I didn't take a moment to mention the finest  
vampire story ever done in the realms of Sailor Moon fanfiction. It's  
called, "The Nocturnal Tour", by the extraordinarily talented and   
wonderfully twisted Lord Chaos. Be aware that it's a hentai story   
(and eechi in places) but well worth the read. Without the trail   
blazed by His Lordship, I couldn't have done this story.  
  
Most of all, thank you to all those who have read my work and taken  
a moment to write to me. I am honored that you chose to spend your   
precious free time on my stories. May your own projects be blessed   
with the support I have had.  
  
Meara 


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